Panel votes to block badges for some TSA employees -- In the wake of incidents involving TSA agents sexually assaulting air travelers and conspiring to smuggle drugs, Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) offered the amendment to "rein in" the agency by withholding funding for the badges. "When you start telling people that they're an officer and wearing a badge, they'll start acting like a law enforcement officer," Rooney said during the markup of the fiscal 2016 Homeland Security funding bill. "They're supposed to screen our bags and passengers, and they're not supposed to act like cops," he added. Rebecca Shabad/The Hill

Travel group to GOP: Don't use TSA fees to pay for highway fix -- The U.S. Travel Association is criticizing House Republicans for planning to use fees that are paid by airline passengers for the Transportation Security Administration to pay for an extension of federal highway spending that is set to expire at the end of the month. House Republicans unveiled an approximately $8 billion highway patch Monday evening that includes about $3 billion in "savings" from redirecting the TSA fees to the nation's beleaguered Highway Trust Fund, which is currently set to dip below critical levels July 31. Keith Laing/The Hill

Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority and Burbank City Council to hold joint meeting to discuss proposals for a replacement terminal --  WHAT: The Burbank City Council and the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority will hold a joint public meeting regarding the proposed replacement passenger terminal at the Burbank Bob Hope Airport at 6 p.m. today (Wednesday, July 15) at Buena Vista Library, 300 N. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA  91505. Both parties are expected to discuss their respective proposals and exchange comments. The public will be offered an opportunity to comment following the presentation. Bob Hope Airport Media Advisory

McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad to offer jet shuttle to Las Vegas -- North County residents will now be able to get to Las Vegas a lot faster. The McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad will begin offering a jet shuttle service to Las Vegas starting July 30. BizAir, a commercial air carrier, will be flying single or round-trip flights on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays initially with plans to potentially expand if the service is popular. Samantha Tatro/NBC7 San Diego

Which New York-area airport has been the most delayed in America so far this year? -- Newark Liberty International Airport's on-time performance improved by nearly 10 percent during the first five months of 2015, a contrast to LaGuardia's worsening rate, which made it the nation's most delayed major airport this year, according to recent federal data. Newark's on-time rate of 75.3 percent through May was below the national average of 78.33 percent, but up sharply from its 65.9 percent on-time rate for January-May 2014, according to the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Steve Strunsky/NJ.com 

Fort Lauderdale airport opens first new concourse in a decade -- A new concourse opened Tuesday at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, the first in more than a decade. A Spirit Airlines flight from Myrtle Beach, S.C., was the first into the new Concourse G in Terminal 4. The last concourse to open at the airport was Concourse B in Terminal 1 in 2003. Terminal 4 opened in 1986 and had been considered the most outdated of the airport's four terminals. Arlene Satchell/Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel

Chinese airline passenger 'threatened and assaulted attendant' on flight to Los Angeles -- A Chinese airline passenger is under investigation for allegedly assaulting a member of the cabin crew on a flight to Los Angeles, according to a newspaper report. The man is accused of attacking and threatening a male flight attendant on a China Southern Airlines flight from Guangzhou to the United States earlier this month, the Guangzhou Daily reported. Ellis Liang/South China Morning Post

Airlines get new tools to avoid turbulence -- Arlines are using new software that transmits weather data from planes in the air to analysts on the ground, allowing pilots to avoid turbulence that can injure passengers and damage planes. A passenger and two flight attendants were hospitalized Saturday after United Airlines flight 1597 ran into turbulence on the way into Washington Dulles International Airport from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Nick Shively/Los Angeles Times

After working with the same agency since 1981, American Airlines launches global review -- American Airlines' global creative and media accounts are up for review as the marketer prepares to retire the US Airways brand after acquiring the rival carrier. American's longtime agencies McCann Erickson, New York, and its affiliate in Dallas, TM Advertising, will defend the creative business. Fellow Interpublic agencies like UM handle American's media internationally and TM works on the airline's U.S. media. Noreen O'Leary/Adweek

Malaysia Airlines prepares to scale back network -- Malaysia Airlines plans to begin scaling down its international network in August as it proceeds with a restructuring exercise announced last year. Plans call for the cessation of the five-times-weekly Kuala Lumpur-Brisbane service, a cut in the 12-times-weekly service to Perth to a single daily flight and a reduction in the three-times-daily services to Sydney and Melbourne to twice daily. Airbus A330-300s operate on all the routes. William Dennis/AIN Online

United Airlines showers air miles on bug bounty researchers -- United Airlines' new bug bounty program is dishing out the rewards -- granting one researcher a massive 1,000,000 air miles for a reported security vulnerability. United's bug bounty program was launched in May this year. Joining the ranks of Facebook, Google and Microsoft to name but a few, in keeping with the firm's industry, United offers air miles in return for vulnerability disclosures. Charlie Osborne/ZD Net

Southwest Airlines flight attendants want to see the money as voting on tentative contract continues -- The drama intensifies, and the clock keeps ticking for thousands of very divided Southwest Airlines flight attendants as their window to vote on a proposed new work contract narrows this week. Starting last Wednesday, rank and file Southwest flight attendants got their first look at the complex tentative contract, which sources said runs a mind-boggling 219 pages. Lewis Lazare/Chicago Business Journal

United Airlines employee charged with fatal hit-and-run crash -- A United Airlines employee is accused of driving off in a company car after a fatally striking a bicyclist Monday evening in northwest suburban Des Plaines. Daniel R. Wehr, 54, is charged with one felony count of leaving the scene of a fatal accident, according to Des Plaines police. Officers first responded to the crash at Algonquin Road and Pennsylvania Avenue about 9:40 p.m., a statement from police said. Leeann Shelton/Chicago Sun-Times

Teamsters sue regional airline over bonuses for new pilots -- Unions say that low pay is creating a pilot shortage at regional airlines, but the Teamsters are taking the unusual step of suing an airline for giving more money to pilots it represents. Republic Airline and Shuttle America have been paying their 2,200 pilots premiums for working on their off days and offering signing bonuses of up to $12,500 for new hires. Starting pay is around $22,000 a year. The Teamsters sued Republic, Shuttle America and parent Republic Airways Holdings Inc. last week in federal district court in Indianapolis. AP

U.S. Bank Tower owner plans to build a rooftop observatory for tourists -- The owner of U.S. Bank Tower in downtown Los Angeles - the tallest skyscraper in the West - is building an outdoor observation deck, bar and restaurant on the top floors, part of a $50-million makeover of the 72-story building. The famous building, once packed with prestigious firms, fell on hard times in recent years and was almost half empty when it was bought in 2013. The new owner, Singapore-based Overseas Union Enterprises Ltd., is now detailing planned improvements. Roger Vincent/Los Angeles Times

Airplane seats that face each other? The Internet responds... -- The seats aren't likely to find their way onto a major airline anytime soon - if ever. But that hasn't stopped the Internet from exploding with stories about an airplane seating plan that would force passengers to face each other in alternating directions. What's prompted all that talk? One of the world's largest airplane seat manufacturers has patented such a plan, which would allow carriers to squeeze more passengers into the economy cabins of their planes. Ben Mutzabaugh/USA Today

For U.S. firms, the Iran deal means pistachios, airline parts and carpets -- For American corporations, the Iran nuclear deal starts with pistachios, caviar, carpets and airplanes - and could mean more. For American consumers, the deal could mean slightly lower oil prices, but not until next year as limits on Iranian crude oil exports are lifted. But for Iran, the nuclear deal - once it is fully implemented several months from now - would have sweeping benefits, giving it access to foreign investment, trade with oil-thirsty markets in Europe and Asia, and escrow accounts currently holding more than $100 billion from oil sales out of Tehran's reach. Steven Mufson/Washington Post

Lyft loophole allows illegal pickups at Seattle airport, puts drivers at risk of citations -- Lyft driver Nick Starr was waiting for a ride request on Monday when he received a notification from a passenger needing a pick-up at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Starr made his way to the terminal, found his customer, helped put luggage in the trunk, and began to drive away. That's when Starr says an airport official stopped his vehicle and asked him if he was working for uberX or Lyft. Starr confirmed he was a Lyft driver. Taylor Soper/GeekWire