Special Olympics World Games

Athletes arrive in L.A. for 2015 Special Olympics World Games -- Hundreds of athletes began arriving in Los Angeles Tuesday as they prepare to compete in the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, billed as the largest sporting event hosted by the Southland since the 1984 Olympic Games. About 6,500 athletes with intellectual disabilities and 2,000 coaches - representing 165 countries - will be taking part in the nine-day spectacle at venues across the Los Angeles area, beginning with the opening ceremony scheduled for Saturday at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. City News Service

Special Olympics World Games poised to be 'most inspirational event ever' -- When the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded the Special Olympics in 1968, she believed people with intellectual disabilities could change the world if given the proper stage. This summer, another huge step toward that mission will be realized as the Special Olympics, now the world's largest sports organization for people with intellectual disabilities, is poised to inspire a mass audience on its most far-reaching stage. Scott Gleeson/USA Today

Airports

LAX closes runway for safety upgrades; causes major flight delays -- Travelers, be advised: The Los Angeles International Airport has closed one of its four runways for safety repairs. It will be closed through the summer and has already caused major flight delays. The Federal Aviation Administration reports the average flight delay nationwide Tuesday night was 15 minutes at airports in cities not affected by weather issues. The average delay at LAX was 56 minutes, due to the closed runway. Stacey Butler/KCAL9

Traffic advisory near LAX: Nightly closures of eastbound Century Boulevard near LAX set for on-going construction of Metro Aviation/Century Station -- Officials at Los Angeles International Airport are reminding motorists that beginning July 20, the planned nightly road closures of eastbound Century Boulevard between Aviation Boulevard and Bellanca Avenue are expected to impact traffic. Motorists are advised to allow extra time for expected delays due to detours and nightly peak traffic volumes LAX is experiencing during the busy summer travel season. LAWA News Release

PHOTOS: L.A. Mayor Garcetti unveils new mile-long ribbon light at LAX -- Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAX officials unveil a new light ribbon at the airport in Los Angeles, CA on Monday, July 20, 2015. The project includes a mile-long LED ribbon of light that stretches around the horseshoe shaped traffic lanes in front of the terminals. New light poles were also installed along with other cosmetic improvements just in time for the athletes to arrive for the Special Olympics World Games. Los Angeles Daily News LAWA News Release

EDITORIAL: Ontario airport's economic malaise -- A Los Angeles versus Ontario dogfight begins next month. The cities are going to trial because Ontario claims damages from the alleged mismanagement of Ontario International Airport, which Los Angeles runs. Ontario wants to take over operations. Last week, Riverside Superior Court Judge Gloria Trask denied a motion by Los Angeles to block testimony over the economic losses to Ontario. With an Aug. 17 trial date, it doesn't seem as though an amicable resolution is coming any time soon. But we still hold out hope that a fair and mutually agreeable deal can be struck by the two cities. Riverside Press-Enterprise Editorial Board

JFK, LaGuardia Airport contract workers to strike Wednesday -- More than 1,000 security officers, baggage handlers and wheelchair attendants at New York's LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airports voted unanimously to authorize a strike starting Wednesday night. The contract workers will walk off the job at JFK's Terminal 7, home to British Airways, United Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways, at 10 p.m. The strike will continue through July 23 at JFK and LaGuardia, said Amity Paye, a spokeswoman for Service Employees International Union's Local 32BJ. Martin Z. Braun & Mary Schlangenstein/Bloomberg Business

Airport study group says KCI needs a new terminal - and it will be cheaper than renovation -- Kansas City should focus on planning for a single new terminal at Kansas City International Airport, airlines and the city's aviation department consultant said Tuesday. And, in a move that caught city officials by surprise, the airport study group said a brand new terminal would actually be cheaper to build than a major renovation of the existing terminals - a reversal of earlier expectations. Matt Campbell/Kansas City Star

Ed Goldman: More airport fun - and why you shouldn't party before flying -- I'm at Los Angeles International Airport several hours before my flight. On purpose. But in a while, it'll be because someone got scared of getting married. I've taken a cab here so early because, like my mom before me, I enjoy people watching, doing crossword puzzles and reading at leisure before a flight. I even enjoy sipping the $18 vodka Martinis they serve in the otherwise seedy sports bar. To be fair, LAX is undergoing an extensive, wall-ripping renovation - though the seedy sports bar was seedy before the project began. Ed Goldman/Sacramento Business Journal

Airlines

A looming pilot shortage means a bumpy ride for airlines -- Where have all the pilots gone? That is the question the Defense Department and some regional airlines, such as Republic Airways and Cape Air, are asking as they contemplate what they believe to be a shortage of professionals able to man their cockpits. To keep the pilots they have and attract new recruits, they are offering hefty signing and retention bonuses, or promising a guaranteed interview with a major carrier after a certain amount of service. Dan Elwell/Wall Street Journal

Why airlines keep pushing biofuels: They have no choice -- The number of global fliers is expected to more than double in the next two decades. In order to carry all those extra passengers, airlines are turning to a technology very few can make work on a large scale: converting trash into fuel. They have no other choice. As people in countries such as China, India and Indonesia get wealthier they are increasingly turning to air travel for vacation or business, creating an enormous financial opportunity for the airlines. Jonathan Fahey & Scott Mayerowitz/AP

FedEx joins airlines in biofuels deal -- Your next overnight shipment could be powered by tree bark. FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., has reached an agreement with Colorado-based Red Rock BioFuels to receive about 3 million gallons of low-carbon renewable jet fuel per year beginning in 2017. The deal is set to run through 2024. A FedEx spokesman said he could not discuss the financial specifics of the deal. The shipping company  joins a number of airlines, including Southwest Airlines Co. and United Continental Holdings Inc. unit United Airlines, in gradually replacing fossil fuels with biofuels to power its planes. Kathleen Burke/MarketWatch

American Airlines begins to clear US Airways reservation system -- If you booked a flight through US Airways recently, you might have received a message over the last couple of days from American Airlines about some changes. American Airlines this past weekend started the three-month purge of the US Airways reservations system and alerted passengers who booked through US Airways that their reservation had been moved to American. American has said that as part of the 2013 US Airways merger, the combined airline will have a single, unified reservation system by Oct. 17. Katherine Peralta/Charlotte Observer

Germanwings crash families accuse airline of ignoring them -- A group of parents whose children were killed in the Germanwings plane crash in March on Tuesday released a scathing letter to Lufthansa's CEO, accusing him of ignoring their needs and feelings and insulting them with his company's compensation offer. The parents of 16 students from the town of Haltern accused Carsten Spohr of never having spoken with relatives to apologize - a claim disputed by the airline. The letter comes amid negotiations with Lufthansa, Germanwings' parent airline, over compensation for the March 24 crash. David Rising/AP

Airline probe spawns lawsuits in Atlanta, elsewhere -- An Atlanta attorney has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging airlines worked together to raise air fares, joining dozens of other lawsuits around the country. The suits followed an investigation launched by the U.S. Department of Justice into possible unlawful coordination by some airlines. The Atlanta suit, filed by attorney David Bain on behalf of a Massachusetts flier, names Delta, American, Southwest and United airlines as defendants. Kelly Yamanouchi/Atlanta Journal-Constitution

TSA

Senate highway bill taps Fed, oil reserves, TSA -- The Senate highway bill that was unveiled by the Senate on Tuesday includes approximately $47 billion in revenue from other areas of the federal budget to supplement gas tax revenue that is used to pay for transportation projects. The 1,030 page measure, which was unveiled about an hour before a procedural vote on Tuesday, relies largely on revenue from reducing interest rates paid by the Federal Reserve to large banks, selling oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve that is used to prevent energy crises and directing fees from Transportation Security Administration and customs processing. Keith Laing/The Hill

FAA

FAA head of labor relations resigns -- FOX Business Network has confirmed the resignation of David Feder, Director, Labor and Employee Relations, Federal Aviation Administration after only six months on the job. The shocking email obtained by FOX Business was sent to FAA employees and alleges FAA management may be violating the law when it negotiates contracts with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) in order to appease the union. Feder was unavailable for comment. Adam Shapiro/Fox Business

Aviation Data & Analysis
ACI Reports 5.6% More Worldwide Airport Passengers In April
Courtesy Oliver Wyman PlaneStats
Traffic Alert

Street closures announced for Vice President Biden's visit -- Sporadic traffic delays are expected as Vice President Joe Biden comes to town for an event in North Hollywood. Biden will be speaking at 1 p.m. Wednesday at Bobrick Washroom Equipment, 6901 Tujunga Ave., to push for an increase in the minimum wage. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, rolling closures can be expected in areas stretching from Los Angeles International Airport to Beverly Hills to North Hollywood between Tuesday night and Thursday. CBS LA

Local Government

L.A. County supervisors agree to boost minimum wage to $15/hour by 2020 -- The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, leaders of the nation's largest local government, voted Tuesday to raise the minimum wage from $9 an hour to $15 over the next few years in county unincorporated areas. The higher wage would apply to county workers but also those laboring in county-controlled unincorporated areas. The action follows an identical increase adopted by the city of Los Angeles in June. Abby Sewell/Los Angeles Times Steve Lopez/Los Angeles Times Related: Enforcement of new L.A. minimum wage law will be challenging

Twice-a-week watering limit could be next for L.A. -- Los Angeles Department of Water and Power officials got a scare when they analyzed the city's June water use data. L.A. barely met the mandatory 16% reduction required by the state, avoiding the penalties that now come with noncompliance. So Tuesday, the Board of Water and Power Commissioners took out some insurance, voting to recommend that the City Council consider moving to Phase III from Phase II of its emergency water conservation plan if L.A. fails to meet state and local targets. The stricter rules would cut sprinkler use to two days a week from three, among other measures.  Matt Stevens & Taylor Goldenstein/Los Angeles Times

Bonus Video
The first Air Force One
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