Alaska Airlines jet hit by lightning lands safely at LAX -- A jet plane heading from Los Angeles to the nation's capital was hit by lightning, and made a safe emergency landing Saturday at LAX. Alaska Airlines Flight 6 left LAX about 12:40 p.m., and the pilot reported getting hit by lightning about half an hour into its trip to Reagan National Airport, Alaska Airlines spokeswoman Bobbie Egan told City News Service. The pilot elected to land back at Los Angeles even though all flight systems checked good, she said. City News Service

After a year, LAX police still searching for owners of abandoned wedding scrapbook -- A wedding scrapbook found in the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport nearly a year ago remains unclaimed, airport officials said Friday. The album was found last Sept. 14 in the arrivals area of the terminal, said Airport Police Officer Rob Pedregon. "Standard protocol for lost items is officers attempt to locate the owners for 97 days," Pedregon said. Westside Staff Today Larry Altman/Torrance Daily Breeze

Passenger numbers tick up at Bob Hope Airport -- There was a 2.1% rise in the number of passengers traveling through the Bob Hope Airport in May compared to the same month last year, according to airfield officials. The hike in passenger count continues a trend that has had officials cautiously optimistic about the future as they continue to court added flights and airlines to the San Fernando Valley's only commercial airfield and also contemplate a rebranding campaign to attract more travelers, especially from east of the Rockies. Chad Garland/Burbank Leader

Shirtless man runs onto San Diego airport runway -- Police arrested a shirtless man believed to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol after he scaled two fences and ran onto a runway at San Diego International Airport, briefly interrupting flights. Airport authority spokesman Jonathan Heller says all incoming and outgoing planes were halted for about seven minutes Thursday evening. Heller says a maintenance worker spotted the man as he climbed over the fence near where planes wait before takeoff. AP

Rep. John Katko wants to close TSA security gaps exploited by airport employees -- U.S. Rep. John Katko introduced a bill Friday to close airport security loopholes, five months after the TSA said it cannot afford to provide physical screenings of all airport workers with access to secure areas. Katko, R-Camillus, said his ''Airport Access Control Security Improvement Act" is a response to a series of security breaches at airports nationwide involving airline and airport employees. Mark Weiner/Syracuse Post-Standard 

NYC's Kennedy airport building luxury animal terminal -- Jet-setting stallions and high-flying hounds at New York's Kennedy Airport can look forward to a new luxury terminal that will handle the more than 70,000 animals flying in and out every year. The ARK at JFK, its name inspired by Noah's biblical vessel, will more than measure up to terminals for humans: Horses and cows will occupy sleek, climate-controlled stalls with showers, and doggies will lounge in hotel suites featuring flat-screen TVs. A special space for penguins will allow them mating privacy. Chicago Tribune wire reports

New York airport workers prepare to strike, claim bosses threatened to fire them over wage push -- Workers at JFK and LaGuardia Airports are preparing to walk off the job next week, saying bosses threatened to fire them after they pushed for better wages. Airport security officers, baggage handlers and cabin cleaners who work for Aviation Safeguards, a subcontractor with Delta, British Airways and United airlines, submitted a strike notice to their employer Thursday. "The company has been violating and neglecting our rights for a long time," said security officer Michael Carey, 49, of Brooklyn. Erica Pearson/New York Daily News

Goodbye, Wingpointe - SLC airport golf course to close this year -- The sand is running out of the hourglass at Wingpointe, but duffers have until the end of this golf season to play the airport links. The closure is a blow to the golf community, said Pat Shea, who headed up the airport board when Wingpointe was built in 1987. The Salt Lake City Department of Airports has determined not to operate or lease the 18-hole course after November, said spokeswoman Bianca Shreeve. Christopher Smart/Salt Lake Tribune

The making of United's summer from airline hell -- United and Continental closed their merger in 2010 and created what was then the world's largest airline. Fifty-seven months later, executives are still working to integrate United Continental Holdings into a single company-and struggling with some high-profile operational and customer service problems. Over the past six weeks, United suffered two technology glitches that grounded flights, including a two-hour network outage on July 8 that halted flights worldwide and was traced to a faulty router. Justin Bachman & Michael Sasso/Bloomberg Business

Thai airlines face flying ban to US -- The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has given Thailand 65 days to address shortcomings found in its aviation safety standards, Transport Minister Prajin Juntong said on Friday. Thai-registered carriers will face a ban on launching flight services to the US if the flaws cannot be fixed within the deadline, he said. ACM Prajin revealed the findings after the US aviation regulator wrapped up its five-day inspection of the country's aviation safety standards. Amornrat Mahitthirook/Bangkok Post

First FAA-approved drone delivery in U.S. is successful -- A medicine-delivering drone from Flirtey completed the first-ever FAA-approved package delivery on Friday, bring supplies to a rural hospital in southwest Virginia. Said trip normally takes 90 minutes of driving (on winding roads) to ferry supplies from an Oakwood, VA-based staging area to the Remote Area Clinic in Wise County, VA. In this case, two aircraft were used instead. A larger aircraft basically piloted from the ground took the medical supplies on a 20-minute flight from the staging area to Lonesome Pines Airport in Wise County, VA. David Murphy/PC Mag

Judge allows cab companies to sue Uber for 'false' safety ads -- California taxicab companies can sue competitor Uber over advertising statements that it offers the safest rides on the road, a federal judge ruled Friday. The suit was filed in March by 19 taxi companies in several cities, including San Francisco. They accused the ride-hailing company of false advertising for stating in ads and online postings that its background checks were the most thorough and its services the safest in the business. Bob Egelko/San Francisco Chronicle

Boeing warns airlines against flying battery shipments -- Boeing, one of the world's two largest aircraft makers, warned its passenger airline customers on Friday that flying bulk shipments of lithium-ion batteries can cause fires capable of destroying the planes. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration also issued a statement acknowledging that testing it has "conducted on the transport of lithium batteries has indicated that it presents a risk." Joan Lowy/AP

World's strangest-looking airplane? A closer look at the Airbus 'Beluga' -- The airplane is one that turns heads. Aviation enthusiasts instinctively know it is the "Beluga," a nickname stemming from the aircraft's uncanny resemblance to the whale of the same name. But nearly all who see it tend to agree that regardless of its name, it's one of the world's strangest-looking aircraft. Nicknamed the Beluga, it's technically the Airbus A300-600ST. Ben Mutzabaugh/USA Today

Grading City Hall: Ron Galperin, City Controller, B-minus -- When the people of Los Angeles elected Ron Galperin as city controller in 2013, they were looking for an independent-minded watchdog who would use the power and bully pulpit of the office to delve into the city's troubled finances, sound the alarm on wasteful or inappropriate spending and hold his fellow public officials accountable for confronting the big, sweeping fiscal issues that Los Angeles faces in the years ahead. So far, what they've gotten is a nice guy with a narrow vision and a tendency to steer clear of the subjects most critical to L.A.'s future. Los Angeles Times Editorial Board