Flights

BURBANK — As primary election ballots begin to show up in Burbank mailboxes, a trend toward negative campaigning for two open City Council seats is seeping into the mainstream. Paid advertisements and yard signs are springing up along with typical rumors and gossip over candidates, testing the boundaries between stirring propaganda and the basic right to express an opinion. Posted in front of the home of Councilman Dave Golonski is a sign reading, "Married Couples for Burbank Council," which is encircled in red and crossed out with diagonal stripe.

Following a multimillion- dollar fine levied against Southwest Airlines in March, a Federal Aviation Administration official told a congressional panel Thursday that Southwest knowingly flew planes that were in need of repair, and the airline’s close relationship with the FAA endangered the lives of passengers. FAA inspector Charalambe “Bobby” Boutris, who received whistle-blower protection from Congress to expose the friendship between his supervisor, Douglas Gawadzinski, and Southwest compliance official Paul Comeau, told the panel that the relationship complicated oversight of the airline.

War veterans and U.S. history buffs filled a dirt lot bordering Bob Hope Airport this weekend to get a glimpse of a restored World War II B-17 bomber. More than 120 people signed up for a chance to take a 30-minute ride on a bomber named “Liberty Belle,” one of 14 remaining B-17s to still fly today. The rides cost about $400. “I figure it’s probably one of those once-in-a-lifetime kind of deals,” Burbank resident Don Fukumoto said Saturday, shortly before boarding the bomber with his two brothers and stepfather.

Comedy, drama and a behind-thescenes look at television news are in the mix this season at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank. The selection starts with "Tonight at 11!" starring Fritz Coleman, a stand up comedian and KNBC News weatherman. Coleman, a former Glendale resident, has written a play that gives a behind-the-scenes look at an 11 p.m. newscast, starting three minutes before air time, he said, adding that there is a plot with some twists. "The public has a natural curiosity about how news people think about what they do," he said.

BOB HOPE AIRPORT ? The Bob Hope Airport halted all inbound and outbound flights for two hours on Tuesday after air traffic radar problems at a regional control tower in Palmdale disrupted flight patterns at several Southern California airports. At about 6 p.m., airport officials learned of a power outage at the Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center in Palmdale, a facility that monitors planes traveling outside the radar screens of individual airports, Operations Supervisor Tom Janowitz said.

Laura Sturza AIRPORT DISTRICT -- Reveling in a common quiet since having their homes sound-insulated from airport noise, about 500 locals picnicked last week. The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport hosted its second annual community picnic Saturday, featuring entertainment, food and information about a free sound insulation program in the airport's "noise impact area." When David M. Howell wanted to buy a house near the airport in 1986, he knew to come for a first look at his prospective home at 7 a.m. on a weekday, a popular flight time.

Robert Blechl AIRPORT DISTRICT -- Three daily United Airlines flights will violate Burbank Airport's voluntary curfew for one month beginning Thursday, airport officials said. The flights will be arriving from and departing to San Francisco International Airport after the 10 p.m. curfew. The incoming flights will be at 10:09 p.m. and 10:59 p.m. and the departing flight at 10:17 p.m. Airport spokesman Victor Gill said United's schedule will continue until June 8. After that time, he said, all United flights will comply with the curfew.

AIRPORT DISTRICT ? Southwest Airlines, which accounts for two-thirds of passenger traffic at Bob Hope Airport, will phase out 12% of its weekly flights by September, airport officials said. The carrier?s decision to trim 82 flights from its weekly schedule is expected to further decrease already-declining passenger numbers at the commuter hub. The drop from 712 to 630 weekly flights will mean a 6% reduction in the total weekly flights leaving the airport. The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority this week presented the proposal to airport commissioners.

VAN NUYS — A noise-reducing measure introduced by officials at Van Nuys Airport could shift nearly 200 flights each year to Bob Hope Airport if a plan to phase out noisier aircraft in Van Nuys is adopted. An environmental review detailing the proposed ordinance was publicly introduced Tuesday in the Van Nuys FlyAway conference room, where scores of informational bulletin boards were displayed in the second-story room across from the airport. If approved, the plan would ground all planes louder than 85 decibels from arriving or departing at Van Nuys Airport in the first quarter of 2009.

Paul Clinton AIRPORT DISTRICT -- United Airlines will add a flight to Burbank Airport that violates the voluntary nighttime curfew, even though both airport and city officials have objected to the move. The flight, which will arrive from San Francisco at 11:15 p.m., will be added to the schedule on Oct. 31. United spokesman Alan Wayne said the late arrival, Flight 2231, couldn't be avoided. The plane departs San Francisco at 10:08 p.m., eight minutes after Burbank Airport's voluntary curfew goes into effect.