Hopefuls

It was a wildly successful and historic 2011-12 girls' basketball season for the four city teams. Not only did Burroughs High, Burbank, Providence and Bellarmine-Jefferson all qualify for the CIF Southern Section playoffs, but the Pioneers and Guards also captured league championships. In addition, Providence, Bell-Jeff and Burbank all advanced to the playoff semifinals in their respective divisions. With their share of returning players, the Bulldogs, Pioneers and Indians are looking to add to that success from last season.

It's 8 a.m. Sunday and John Palyok, general manager of a Best Buy store in Burbank, is brandishing a $19.99 Dynex HDMI cable like a battle standard. A group of 50 employees, mostly in their 20s, gather around him, gulping coffee and nodding slowly. "It's about speed, velocity and execution," bellowed Palyok, his voice echoing through the store's cavernous, 45,000-square-foot interior. "They, need, need this HDMI cable," Palyok said, slicing the thin blue box through the air like a battle-ax.

Bob Hope Airport officials today announced plans to host a fundraiser to benefit Superstorm Sandy victims, many of whom are now dealing with the effects of a strong nor'easter. The winter storm blew in Wednesday, dumping snow and knocking power out in a region still trying to recover from Sandy. On Friday, officials at Bob Hope Airport will be stationed outside the main entrance near the Terminal A baggage claim and outside the entrances to Terminals A and B collecting cash or checks made out to the American Red Cross, according to an announcement today.

The number of passengers at Bob Hope Airport plummeted by 10% in September compared to last year -- catching officials off guard. Revenues generated by parking fees -- an important source of income for the airport -- also dropped sharply, according to the latest report released on Monday. The decline, which senior deputy executive director John Hatanaka said “shocked” airport staff, was by far the steepest drop among other airports in the region. Ontario Airport reported a 5.8% decrease, while Long Beach Airport saw a 6.4% drop, Hatanaka said.

A North Hollywood man this week became just the second person to plead guilty under a new federal law that makes it a crime to point a laser beam at an aircraft -- in this case, a jet and police helicopter near Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, officials announced Tuesday. The man, Adam Gardenhire, 19, pleaded guilty Monday to deliberately pointing a commercial-grade green laser beam in March at multiple aircraft, including a Netjet-operated aircraft and Pasadena Police Department helicopter, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Jet Blue canceled two New York-bound flights from Bob Hope Airport on Monday as Hurricane Sandy pummeled the Eastern Seaboard. Flight 350 and 358 to John F. Kennedy International Airport were canceled, as were flights 355 and 359 coming out of New York, Victor Gill, a spokesman for Bob Hope Airport, said in an email. Jet Blue also canceled Flight 350 to JFK on Tuesday. Scores more flights - about 130 - had been canceled at Los Angeles International Airport as of Monday, The Times reported . Officials warned that additional flights could be affected by the super storm, which was expected to force more than 60 of those cancellations Monday.

Police officials and other employees at Bob Hope Airport on Tuesday donated a combined $2,125 to a 6-year-old girl who -- having been diagnosed with a form of pediatric kidney cancer -- has been raising funds for cancer research. It all started with a goal to raise $300 at her lemonade stand. But as word of Aleyna Doche's campaign spread, the money poured in. On the first day, she raised more than $1,500 alone. Since then, Aleyna's little lemonade stand has grown into quite the fundraising operation.

A woman who tussled with Bob Hope Airport security officers over a container of applesauce for her elderly mother seems poised to draw the ire of another federal official - this time a U.S. District Court judge. Nadine Hays was arrested in 2009 after she refused to give up an ice chest containing the snack to Transportation Security Adminstration officials. Criminal charges stemming from that incident were dropped in October 2010, after Hays reported six months of good behavior. [For the Record, Oct. 24: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that TSA agents arrested Nadine Hays.

As the father of a Burbank student, I was disheartened to receive a letter, as required by state law, from the principal of McKinley Elementary School, informing parents that for the second year in a row, the school has been placed on academic probation. I was disheartened, but not because my son attends a failing school. McKinley Elementary is a welcoming place staffed with highly dedicated professionals and experts who have helped my autistic son succeed. I was disheartened because under No Child Left Behind, such a wonderful school is now under the gun. The sanctions against it, which now are limited to offering parents the option of placing their children at other schools, will become more punitive every year it fails to meet its annual goals.

Four Alaska Airlines departures were delayed at Bob Hope Airport on Monday because of a system-wide software outage that snarled the carrier's flight schedules across the country for hours. The delays rolled on even after the system was back online by the afternoon. A departure slated for 11:15 a.m. to Seattle actually took off at 1:49 p.m. , according to the website flightstats.com. Later, a 2:18 p.m. flight to Portland didn't depart until 2:58 p.m. The biggest expected delay was a 6:55 p.m. departure to Seattle that was rescheduled to leave at 9:37 p.m., the website indicated Monday afternoon.