Flight Path

The federal government Tuesday ended its 180-day test of a controversial departure route from Santa Monica Municipal Airport that resulted in thousands of noise complaints from densely populated neighborhoods along the flight path. The Federal Aviation Administration's experiment, which began Dec. 10, directed departing propeller planes to turn right over the neighborhoods of Sunset Park and Ocean Park when flying under instrument flight rules, such as during foggy or cloudy weather.

To the thousands of glum and despairing passengers marooned across Europe on Friday by an unforeseen act of God, it may have seemed like a page from "Paradise Lost." "Me miserable!" John Milton wrote 350 years ago. ". . . Which way I fly is hell." Many had grappled with the tribulations of bad weather, veteran fliers for whom snow and rain held no mystery. But a volcano spewing fire and ash from the bowels of Earth? Hell didn't seem too far-fetched a metaphor. For all of its highways, ferries and passenger trains that still stop at every little town, Europe was absorbing a lesson in how much it depends on aviation.

Even by Haiti's post-earthquake standards, the little encampment on an expanse of grass next to the airport is a jarring sight. No more than 100 people strong, established beneath sheets lashed to branches driven into the ground and with a red SUV parked in its midst, it is a sign of the lengths people will go to in their search for a safe place to settle. It also sits less than half a mile from thousands of tons of medical supplies, food, water and other assistance that are pouring into Port-au-Prince's airport.

State lawmakers passed measures Thursday to protect foreign-speaking business patrons and make life tough for waterfowl that imperil airline travelers. Worried that geese and jets don't mix, the Senate approved a bill that would give airports greater authority to avoid run-ins with game wardens if they need to kill birds that could interfere with jets. Meanwhile, the Assembly approved a measure that would prohibit restaurants and other establishments from refusing to serve patrons because they're speaking a different language.

The aquamarine lake lapped at Greg Toussaint's well tended backyard, beckoning him to take his electric-powered boat, Two Saints, on a spin through serene canals here that border million-dollar homes. The serenity will not last long: In a move that presents a cautionary tale for Southern California, the Federal Aviation Administration plans to reroute hundreds of departing flights from McCarran International Airport over Toussaint's community, known as The Lakes.

THE 800 YUP'IK ESKIMOS in this wet and lonely village knew the situation was serious when government scientists began swooping in on bush planes. Except for a few doctors that fly in each year to give villagers checkups, outsiders rarely visited this outpost of scattered gray plywood homes and prefab structures plopped in the middle of the tundra. Soon, latex gloves appeared on store shelves and Wild West-style posters started popping up around town: "Wanted: Birds of the Delta."

On any given day, a small swarm of day-trippers, paramedics, traffic reporters and downtown executives flies along the East River. A day after New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle's small aircraft slammed into a condominium tower, several politicians called for strict curbs on such flights, saying they offer terrorists easy access to the city's landmarks. Gov. George E. Pataki said the crash "brings into sharp focus the need to gain greater control of the airspace around New York."

Re "Jet-Setters Give Santa Monica the Jitters," June 22 Celebrities are not the only users of jets and other high-performance aircraft operating into and out of Santa Monica Airport. Many corporations on the Westside have flight departments that utilize the efficient location of their local airport over a long drive to Van Nuys, Burbank or Long Beach. I have a little sympathy for those who elect to buy cheap real estate in the flight path of an airport -- and then complain about the noise and smell.

A passenger on a commercial flight jumped out of the airplane as it prepared to take off here Monday, authorities said. Troy Rigby, 28, was detained on the tarmac by officers who used a stun gun to subdue him, the Broward County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. The Boeing 737 had been delayed for about 30 minutes and, as it began to move toward the runway, Rigby started yelling to get off the plane. He ran to the front of the aircraft and banged on windows and the cockpit door.

The garden of 98th Street Elementary School is almost ready for harvest. Tomatoes, green beans and zucchini planted by students and their teachers are nearing ripeness. Curly leafed lettuce is shooting forth. But by the time the crop is ready, there will be no one left on campus to gather it. The school is closing Thursday. While the rest of the Los Angeles Unified School District has a massive building project underway, the 98th Street school faces a peculiar fate.