LAX could see more than 100 million travelers a year by 2040 -- New aviation forecasts predict that Los Angeles International Airport, already straining under a record number of passengers, could have more than 100 million travelers annually by 2040, far more than the ceiling set by a 2006 court settlement that will soon expire. According to projections released last week, the Southern California Assn. of Governments estimates that between 78.9 million and 100.7 million passengers a year will eventually pass through the nation's second-busiest commercial airport. Dan Weikel/Los Angeles Times

American won't add more Dallas - Asia routes, signifying a shift in airline atrategy -- Since American reports success selling premium tickets Dallas - Hong Kong and since Dallas is getting a first class lounge one might imagine that in addition to Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo and Seoul it could be that Dallas would see another Asia route in the future. One could imagine a third Chinese city. However in Thursday's earnings call it was made clear this wasn't on the table. Answering a question about whether Boeing 787s and Airbus A350s would ever mean a Philadelphia - Asia flight, a company representative said, "I don't know what the long term answer is, but for the foreseeable future Asia growth will be growing our Los Angeles Gateway to Asia." Gary Leff/View from the Wing

LAX ups its curbside appeal -- Another phase of the major upgrade program is underway at Los Angeles International Airport. This one focuses on curbside appeal and includes modern LED street lighting, custom-made art deco LED light poles and a programmable LED light band running the length of the Central Terminal. LAX tells us the light band is over one mile long, is attached to the edge of the Upper/Departures Level roadway and is made up of 690 eight-foot-long individual light boxes interconnected and controlled by a single theater control system. Harriet Baskas/Stuck at the Airport Designboom

Study outlines congestion, air pollution improvements for Bob Hope Airport -- Planes, trains and automobiles - and buses and bikes and even good old walking. All these modes of transportation converge at Bob Hope Airport, and a recent transit study outlines potential improvements around the airport to enable it to serve as a transportation hub within the region. The study, which was initiated in September 2011 and paid for mostly by a $5.4 million federal grant, looked at ways to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution while improving connectivity to the airport both along the Antelope Valley rail corridor and from Pasadena via Glendale. Chad Garland/Los Angeles Times

Letter: Pleased with talks on Bob Hope Airport terminal -- The Valley Industry and Commerce Assn. is pleased both the city of Burbank and the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority are sitting down for productive dialogue about replacing the existing passenger terminal at the airport. The recent joint meeting was very encouraging. The airport is a vital transportation hub that continues to serve local residents and businesses. Airport leadership and council members are doing the right thing in meeting for a common goal and discussion before putting a plan to the voters. Stuart Waldman/Letters/Burbank Leader

Letter: BUR by any other name is still BUR -- Please permit a view from a distance on the issue of renaming Bob Hope Airport. I ask, "Why?" The name of an airport has nothing to do with marketing. The location does. Many airports were named in honor/memory of individuals who were deemed worthy of being recognized: War hero, military figure, nation's president, entertainer, and so on. Why do passengers fly into any of these airports? Not because of their names. They fly because marketing has attracted them. Art Pahr/Letters/Burbank Leader

San Jose airport gives CLEAR a trial run -- Alaska Airlines hopes the future of aviation security will allow customers to leave their boarding passes and even their driver's licenses at home. About 200 customers of the airline who regularly fly out of Mineta San Jose International Airport are in a pilot program that allows a machine to scan their eyeballs or examine their fingerprints when checking in bags, going through airport security and boarding a plane -- rather than produce IDs and boarding passes. Sophie Mattson/San Jose Mercury News

U.S. airport Wi-Fi upgrades offer hope connection speeds won't always be miserable -- Web browsing became a little more pleasant at the seven busiest U.S. airports during the past year as their average Wi-Fi speeds got faster and terminals from coast to coast invested in updates to their Wi-Fi technology. Denver International Airport's $1 million Wi-Fi upgrades made last year are evident as it had the fastest Wi-Fi of the seven airports for which data was analyzed between March and May 2015 by wefi, a mobile data analytics company. Dan Peltier/Skift

Kuala Lumpur's $1 billion air terminal is sinking, airline says -- Kuala Lumpur International Airport's new budget passenger terminal is sinking, with cracks appearing in the taxiway and water forming pools that planes must drive through. The defects could cause flight delays, increase wear and tear on planes and pose potential safety risks, according to AirAsia Bhd., the new terminal's biggest user. Pooi Koon Chong/Bloomberg

DOT investigates airlines for gouging after Amtrak crash -- Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx launched an investigation Friday into whether five airlines gouged travelers on ticket prices after an Amtrak crash in Philadelphia. "The idea that any business would seek to take advantage of stranded rail passengers in the wake of such a tragic event is unacceptable," Foxx told reporters at a breakfast organized by the Christian Science Monitor newspaper. Bart Jansen/USA Today

Airlines: We're not colluding, we're competing! -- When the Justice Department announced this month that is investigating the nation's four biggest airlines for collusion, many frequent fliers replied with an announcement of their own: "Ya think?" But collusion to some is competition to others: the similar fares, the baggage fees, the cheap food - all exist not because the airlines are working together but because they're working against each other. Kelly Yamanouchi/Atlanta Journal-Constitution

American Airlines sees no quick end to unit-revenue fall, shares drop --American Airlines Group Inc on Friday said it is facing sharp declines in unit revenue for months to come, sending its stock down nearly 7 percent, even though the company posted its highest profit ever last quarter. The world's largest passenger carrier expects revenue per available seat mile to fall between 6 percent and 8 percent this quarter. The decline could continue until the second half of 2016, President Scott Kirby told investors Friday. Jeffrey Dastin/Reuters

Southwest Airlines flight attendants overwhelmingly reject proposed contract -- Randy Babbitt, Southwest's senior vice president of labor relations, said the deal would have "ensured that our flight attendants would stay atop the industry in pay and benefits." In addition, "it improved the company's competitiveness with certain work-rule changes and supported our evolving network, both domestically and in international markets," Babbitt said in the company's response. "So naturally we're disappointed that it didn't pass." Terry Maxon/Dallas Morning News

The top American Airlines reporter will head off into retirement -- Dallas is the center of U.S. airline industry coverage. It is the home of two of the top four airlines, the third busiest U.S. airport and four good reporters who primarily cover airlines. At the head of the line of reporters is Terry Maxon, whose "Airline Biz Blog" in The Dallas Morning News is the foremost must-read in the industry. It gets about five million hits annually. Sadly, Terry has decided to take a buyout from the newspaper and to retire on Sept. 11. Ted Reed/Forbes

Delta Air Lines to alter reward program; other airlines may follow -- If you are saving up reward miles to pay for a trip on Delta Air Lines, you might want to book the trip before the airline switches to a new format that could raise the number of miles you need for the most popular destinations. For travel on or after June 1, 2016, Delta said the number of miles needed to book a flight may rise based on destination, demand and "other considerations." But don't expect the airline to disclose the exact reasons why fares will vary from day to day. Hugo Martin/Los Angeles Times

United Airlines pays out 'bug bounties' to clean up security gaps -- In a first for a U.S. carrier, United Airlines has paid out "bug bounties" to cybersecurity experts who found and exposed weaknesses in the airline's website. Two cybersleuths were each paid 1 million loyalty reward miles for uncovering gaps in the airline's Web security. The Chicago-based carrier announced it would pay out the bounty in May, a few weeks before the latest of several technical glitches grounded flights for nearly 90 minutes. Hugo Martin/Los Angeles Times

A fee to be the first to exit a plane? Many fliers are willing to pay it -- Charges for checked bags, entertainment, food and seats with extra legroom among other extras generated $38.1 billion for the world's airlines in 2014, a 21% increase from the previous year, according to a report from IdeaWorks, a Wisconsin-based airline consulting firm. But you can expect such revenue to continue to soar as airlines consider adopting even more fees. How about a fee that ensures your bag is delivered at the baggage carousel before all the others? Hugo Martin/Los Angeles Times

KLM gives sneak-peek of its Boeing 787 'Dreamliner' -- Dutch carrier KLM isn't scheduled to get its first Boeing 787 "Dreamliner" until this fall, but the carrier teased the arrival of its new jet on Friday by releasing several images of the aircraft decked out in its signature color scheme. The airline also revealed the look of its business class cabin planned for its 787-9s, which are to begin arriving to the carrier in October. "The Boeing 787-9 enables KLM to offer passengers even more comfort and privacy," KLM CEO Pieter Elbers says in a statement. Ben Mutzabaugh/USA Today

Palo Alto: FAA official receptive to group's concerns about aircraft noise -- A community advocacy group's concerns about excessive aircraft noise did not fall on deaf ears at a meeting today with a Federal Aviation Administration official. The two-hour-plus "work session" at Palo Alto City Hall was organized by congressional leaders in response to a recent spike in the number of noise complaints. More meetings are planned. Jacqueline Lee/Daily News Group

Facing regulatory roadblocks, Uber ramps up its lobbying in California -- Uber now spends more on lobbyists in California than Wal-Mart, Bank of America or Wells Fargo. And for good reason: The 6-year-old ride-hailing company needs powerful friends as it faces two serious regulatory challenges in the state - a move to reclassify its drivers as employees, not independent contractors, and a demand to turn over to state officials data on every Uber ride. Those are only the latest public fights threatening to slow the firm's lightning-quick international expansion.  Chris Kirkham & Tracey Lien/Los Angeles Times

Michelle Obama opens Special Olympics at star-studded ceremony in Los Angeles -- Michelle Obama welcomed thousands of athletes with intellectual disabilities to the Special Olympic World Games on Saturday during a festive opening ceremony filled with cheers, songs and praise for their courage and determination. "My husband and I, we are so proud of you, so incredibly proud of you, and we love you all from the bottom of our hearts," the first lady said. She said the athletes were an example to the millions of people watching the event on television. John Rogers/AP

Grading City Hall: City Attorney Mike Feuer - Grade B-plus -- After the histrionics of Carmen Trutanich and the poor judgment and egotism of Rocky Delgadillo, Mike Feuer is fast on his way to being Los Angeles' best city attorney in decades. He's upgraded the quality of work in his beleaguered office of more than 500 lawyers and he's gone out of his way to find practicable solutions for vexing legal stalemates that have bedeviled the city for many years. He's off to a strong start, although he can do even more. Los Angeles Times Editorial Board

DWP seeks to increase water and power rates -- Setting the stage for scrutiny of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which has been bruised by a series of high-profile customer service debacles, department officials announced Wednesday they want to raise water and power rates. Under the proposal, which requires Los Angeles City Council approval, the average Los Angeles homeowner would pay nearly $24 more a month by 2020 for water and electricity. High-use water and power users would pay nearly $88 more a month. Dakota Smith/Los Angeles Daily News

LAX TV Program Opening Theme 2004