Airports
Supervisors delay decision on $102M John Wayne Airport project -- The Orange County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday delayed its decision on the $102 million John Wayne Airport improvement project to its Oct. 20 meeting. The board is to select a builder for the project. The repairs will be 89 percent funded through the airport's construction fund, with the rest covered through its operating fund, officials say. About $10 million will come from the fiscal year 2016 budget, $45 million in 2017, $36 million in 2018 and the rest in the 2019 fiscal year. Samuel Mountjoy/Orange County Register
Alaska Airlines service to LAX from Monterey starts Nov. 5 -- Alaska Airlines plans on filling the void left by American Airlines when it starts daily round-trip flights between Monterey and Los Angeles on Nov. 5. American ended direct flights to Los Angeles in September. In celebration of Alaska's new service, the carrier is offering $59 fares to customers who purchase tickets by Monday - extending and lowering an offer first made in June.  James Herrera/Monterey Herald
Isaac and Sage Cook search: Two Washington boys missing, last seen at LAX in August -- The Federal Bureau of Investigation is asking the public's help in locating two boys who were last seen at Los Angeles International Airport on August 28th. The two boys, Isaac and Sage Cook ages 15 and 9 are mixed race Asian-Caucasian and may be in the custody of their Taiwanese descent mother Faye Ku and their toddler half-brother. Isaac and Sage live in Bellevue, Washington with their father, who has primary custody of the boys, and their stepmother. Katie Faller/ABC15 Arizona
Obama to appear at 3 Democratic fundraisers during whirlwind visit to Los Angeles -- President Barack Obama will make a roughly 6 1/2-hour visit to Southern California Saturday to attend a series of Democratic fundraisers. Obama is scheduled to arrive at Los Angeles International Airport at 1 p.m. Saturday, according to the White House. He is scheduled to depart at 7:25 p.m. While in Los Angeles, Obama is expected to take part in a roundtable discussion at the home of "Star Trek" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" director J.J. Abrams, with tickets costing $33,400 per person, according to Variety. CBS LA
Emotions run high at FAA flight path public meeting in San Diego -- It was standing room only for the unveiling of the FAA's proposed flight path changes in and out of San Diego International Airport. Emotions ran high for those that oppose the changes at the public meeting held Tuesday evening in Liberty Station. Planes flying over Point Loma is not new, but what the FAA is currently proposing by most accounts would double eastbound traffic. The Metroplex proposal, which encompasses several Southern California airports, is meant to increase the efficiency of the way planes come in to those airports primarily by switching them over to the FAA's Next Generation Air Transportation System, NextGen. Dave Summers/NBC7 San Diego
Farm-to-tray table: JetBlue opens airport "farm" -- JetBlue Airways is trying to bring a little bit of country to the city -- opening its own "farm" at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. The 24,000 square-foot space -- less than half the size of a football field -- outside JFK's Terminal 5 is meant to educate travelers more than actually feed them. Although eventually JetBlue would like to serve items grown there in terminal restaurants and even make some blue potato Terra Chips that are served on flights. One day, if the airport allows it, there might even be animals, such as bees and butterflies. AP
Drones
FAA to test drone tracking near airports -- The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday it would test technology to identify drones flying within 5 miles of an airport and tracking them back to their operators. FAA Deputy Administrator Michael Whitaker told the House Transportation subcommittee on aviation that CACI International would use existing technology to identify drones by their radio signals, under a partnership with FAA. Otherwise, hundreds of drone reports pouring into the FAA are "very difficult" to track to their ground-based operators, he said. Bart Jansen/USA Today
Boxer introduces legislation to make drone offenses federal misdemeanors -- Citing recent clashes between civilian drone encounters that slowed recent firefights, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, introduced the Safe Drone Act on Wednesday to address the growing problem of jeopardizing public safety by flying too close to wildfires and airports. In announcing the legislation, Boxer cited the fiery July 17 incident on Interstate 15 in the Cajon Pass. That's when civilian drones flying near firefighting aircraft forced them to leave for about 20 minutes. Jim Steinberg/San Bernardino Sun
Drones are providing film and TV viewers a new perspective on the action -- A year after the Federal Aviation Administration cleared the way for their use by the film and television industry, unmanned aircraft systems are becoming popular tools for directors and cinematographers. Drones aren't yet ubiquitous - less than 10% of all productions use them. But demand is growing rapidly on film sets because they allow for more nimble filmmaking - and save money. A camera drone and crew costs as little as $5,000 a day, compared with at least $25,000 a day for a helicopter shoot. Richard Verrier/Los Angeles Times
Airlines
The airline reimagined: Is this the future we've been asking for? -- Could this be the Uber for airlines? Start-up "Poppi" imagines the airline of the future, where customers can fly "cinema class," where the getting the dreaded middle seat means you win sponsored treats, and where baggage is dropped off when you leave home -- and reappears at your hotel. Teague, the design consultancy behind the Boeing Dreamliner's spacey interiors, have created Poppi to challenge the world's airlines to listen to travelers' age-old complaints and come up with surprising solutions. CNN
Are airline passengers ready to climb into flying bunk beds? -- Airlines and aircraft manufacturers keep coming up with wackier ideas for squeezing more people into airplanes. Remember the saddle-seat? And the hexagon sardine scheme? The latest zany proposal is outlined in a patent filed in Europe by aircraft manufacturer Airbus to offer passengers a flying version of bunk beds. Passengers would climb stairs or a ladder to reach the upper level of the two-tiered seating layout and seats that could be reclined to a lie-flat position, which would allow one passenger to stretch out on top of another, with a bit of space between them. Harriet Baskas/NBC News
WTO won't weigh in to resolve international airline spat -- A senior World Trade Organization executive on Tuesday quashed the idea the trade body could help to quickly resolve a high-profile international airline spat over market access and subsidies, after calls for the institution to serve as an arbiter over competition among carriers. The three major U.S. carriers- Delta Air Lines Inc., United Continental Holdings Inc. and American Airlines Group Inc.-and European airlines Air France-KLM and Deutsche Lufthansa AG, have urged their governments to block further market access to a trio of state-owned Middle East carriers they accuse of receiving $42 billion in government backing. Robert Wall/Wall Street Journal
Ethiopian Airlines to buy 15 to 20 Boeing 777X jetliners, CEO says -- Ethiopian Airlines plans to place an order for Boeing Co. 777X long-range jetliners before the end of the year, the East African carrier's chief executive said. The airline could buy as many as 15 to 20 of Boeing's newest airplanes after also considering the purchase of Airbus Group SE's A350-1000 widebody, Tewolde Gebremariam said in an interview on Wednesday. The deal would have a value of $7.4 billion at list price, though buyers typically get discounts. Robert Wall/Wall Street Journal
Delta sues smaller airline over canceled flights -- Delta Air Lines Inc. is suing Republic Airways Holdings Inc., claiming that the regional airline company failed to fly some Delta Connection flights. Republic has said it curtailed flying for regional affiliates of Delta, American and United because of a pilot shortage that it has blamed partly on a labor dispute with pilots. Delta sued Republic in a state court in Atlanta on Monday. In the heavily blacked-out version available to the public, Delta said that it suffered "millions" in lost profits because Republic couldn't operate all the flights it promised, causing Delta to cancel flights and scramble to find replacement planes. AP
Southwest Airlines has arrived: Carrier makes a definitive on-time arrival statement in September -- September will go down in the books as absolutely the best month in recent memory for on-time arrival performance at all four major domestic airlines - but especially for Southwest Airlines. The low-fare behemoth, which has its largest hub at Chicago's Midway Airport, for the first time soared to the top of the leader board in September, with a whopping 87.5 percent of its flights arriving on time last month, according to results released today by FlightView, a provider of airline and airport data. Lewis Lazare/Chicago Business Journal
AirlineRatings.com names best inflight experiences for 2015 -- Sorry, U.S. airlines, when it comes to inflight services, you're still not making the grade. So says aviation website AirlineRatings.com, which has ranked international carriers on the quality of their first, business, premium and economy offerings and apparently found American airlines wanting. Instead, Asian, Middle Eastern and Antipodean carriers dominate the top 10 lists in each category, with a smattering of European airlines, including Virgin and Lufthansa, making up the numbers. Barry Neild/CNN 
Ethiopian Airlines, IndiGo, Qantas, Athens, Budapest, Vancouver, IBS receive awards at CAPA dinner -- Ethiopian Airlines, IndiGo and Qantas Airways received the top airline awards at the 2015 CAPA Aviation Awards for Excellence, held on 7-Oct-2015 in Helsinki as part of CAPA's 2015 World Aviation Summit. Athens, Budapest and Vancouver were winners in the airport categories, picking up awards at a gala dinner hosted by Travelport. Now in its thirteenth year, CAPA's Aviation Awards for Excellence are intended to reward airlines and airports that are not only successful but have also provided industry leadership in an always changing environment. CAPA
Fed up: Will fliers' anger finally bring passenger rights? -- Two years ago, this column asked, "When do airline passengers get their bill of rights?", which detailed how air travelers in Europe - but not in the United States - fly under clear and firm rules for how airlines must treat them during delays, cancellations and other service disruptions. I've been writing about the political climate for strengthening passenger rights going back quite a few years now, and even expressed optimism in 2009 with "Passenger rights debate on glide path through Congress." Bill McGee/USA Today
Why you should keep a tighter grip on airline boarding passes -- You might want to think twice before shoving that boarding pass into the seat pocket in front of you. Security reporter Brian Krebs says there could be sensitive information on it. NPR
Passenger thanks 'hero' co-pilot who safely landed American Airlines flight after pilot's sudden death: 'There was no panic' -- When an American Airlines pilot died suddenly during a red-eye flight early Monday, the plane's first officer made a successful emergency landing, saving the lives of 152 people on board.  One of those passengers, novelist and mother of two Heidi McLaughlin, is hoping to give that first officer the recognition he deserves. "The co-pilot landed this plane as his partner died right next to him," McLaughlin tells PEOPLE. "That to me is a hero." Tiare Dunlap/People
Four plead not guilty to disruption on Southwest flight -- Four San Diego-area men pleaded not guilty in a Texas federal court Wednesday to charges of interfering with a flight crew on Southwest Airlines. The four members of a Chaldean soccer league team were dressed in suits and appeared "somber-faced," according to the Amarillo Globe-News. Jonathan Khalid Petras, 20; Essa Solaqa, 20; Khalid Yohana, 19; and Wisam Imad Shaker, 23, were charged in the incident and each is free on $10,000 bail. Tony Berry/Los Angeles Times
TSA
Airlines protest use of TSA, customs fees in highway bill -- Airlines and travel groups are protesting the use of Transportation Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) fees to pay for an extension of federal highway spending that is expiring at the end of the month. The Senate approved a highway bill in July that includes $4 billion from customs fees and $3.5 billion from the TSA fees in a package of offsets that were used to provide funding for three years' worth of transportation funding. House Republicans similarly included about $3 billion in "savings" from redirecting the TSA fees to the nation's highways in a transportation funding patch that is scheduled to expire Oct. 29. Keith Laing/The Hill
Travel
Travel packages even first-class passengers can't ignore -- Travel packages aren't just for budget tourists following tour guides with red umbrellas anymore. Travelers accustomed to five stars and first class can easily save with them, too. Airlines, hotels and car-rental companies have gotten more aggressive at offering unpublished discount prices through bundled packages, and online travel agencies are making it easier to book packages, even on smartphones. Business travelers, too, can save big buying airline tickets and hotel rooms together. Scott McCartney/Wall Street Journal
Transportation Network Companies
Chicago cab drivers strike over airport rideshare pickups -- Taxi drivers across Chicago are planning to hold a 24-hour strike to protest the city's decision to let Uber and other rideshare services pick up passengers at the city's two airports. The work stoppage is set to run from Thursday into Friday morning, according to a statement from the United Taxidrivers Community Council. "The Mayor has allowed Uber and other rideshares to take over much of the cab business, and allowing them in the airports will finish us off, which is apparently his plan," the statement read. NBC5 Chicago
San Jose: With no takers on pilot program, officials to revisit airport ride-booking rules -- Five weeks after a ride-booking pilot project launched that requires fingerprint background checks for drivers in popular services such as Lyft and Uber to operate at the airport, the city has seen no takers, and on Monday officials moved toward taking a new look at the issue. "I didn't want to be correct when I predicted in June that they wouldn't have participants," said Carl Guardino, CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. "But without any participants, you don't have a pilot project." Eric Kurhi/San Jose Mercury News
Aviation Data & Analysis
Commuter Carrier Costs Increase 6.5% YOY Q2 2015
Courtesy Oliver Wyman PlaneStats
Transit
Gov. Brown signs bill opening door to tax increase for L.A. County transit -- Los Angeles County voters may be asked to approve a half-cent increase in the sales tax for transportation projects to ease traffic gridlock as a result of a measure signed Wednesday by Gov. Jerry Brown. The bill allows the L.A. County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to seek approval from voters for a tax increase to continue work done after the approval of Measure R in 2008 by 67% of voters. Patrick McGreevy/Los Angeles Times
City Government
L.A. earthquake retrofit bill passes key hurdle at City Hall -- A landmark effort to require earthquake retrofits of as many as 15,000 buildings in Los Angeles passed a key hurdle Wednesday, as the City Council's housing committee approved the legislation on a 4-0 vote. The City Council is scheduled to consider the full legislation on Friday. If approved, the law proposed by Mayor Eric Garcetti would be the most sweeping earthquake safety measure in California history. It would require retrofits of as many as 13,500 wooden apartment buildings and 1,500 brittle concrete buildings. Rong-Gong Lin II & Rosanna Xia/Los Angeles Times
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