Oakland International Airport

THE BEST WAY TO PORT CHICAGO Visitors to Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial ([925] 228-8860, http://www.nps.gov/poch) usually begin by parking at the entrance to the Army's Military Ocean Terminal Concord on Port Chicago Highway in Concord. The site is about 45 minutes from Oakland International Airport, an hour from San Francisco International Airport. Tours are typically offered by request at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. Rangers require that visitors make reservations (which are free)

The Oakland Athletics missed a flight from Toronto and didn't expect many fans to welcome them home early Monday after winning the American League pennant. But they were surprised. At least 500 enthusiastic fans were waiting at Oakland International Airport when the A's appeared shortly after 1 a.m. Monday. Some fans had waited several hours for the team.

Placer County sheriff's officials said Monday they found the body of the pilot of a small plane that had disappeared Sunday from radar after it left Reno-Tahoe International Airport and crashed near the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort. Authorities said they had not identified the pilot, who was found dead about noon Monday. The plane's pilot told air traffic controllers at Oakland International Airport on Sunday night that his wings were icing and that he was going down.

Record-setting weekend temperatures here reached the upper 90s, uncharacteristic for a city that usually is shrouded in cool fog at this time of year. And while the unusually warm weekend weather may have been welcomed by beach-goers, it proved to be a major irritation for towns without electricity and for firefighters dousing small brush fires. Arrivals at Stinson Beach, north of the city, were turned away after parking lots filled quickly.

Evidence was gathered Tuesday against a pilot who twice flew his light plane under the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, then entered restricted air space at Oakland International Airport and Alameda Naval Air Station, the Federal Aviation Administration reported. "We want to take emergency action on his (flight) certificate," said Terry Gordon, FAA principal operations inspector.

The pilot of the helicopter that crashed into a Northern California electric transmission tower, killing rock music promoter Bill Graham, was warned by air traffic controllers not to fly because of poor weather. Federal authorities said two taped conversations between pilot Steve Kahn and the flight service station at Oakland International Airport show that controllers recommended that Kahn not fly without instruments, according to safety board investigators.

A body found at a cemetery here Sunday is believed to be that of a staff photographer with the San Jose Mercury News who had been missing for nearly a week. Police suspect that Luci S. Houston, 43, was slain, but would not disclose the cause of death. She was found in her car, covered by a tarp, about a mile from her home. Police have no suspects. Sgt. Tim Nolan said the case was unusual. "There are obviously a lot of strange things about this case," he said.

This month, federal security officers stopped a traveler at the Oakland International Airport because of an unusual wristwatch he was wearing. When word got out, critics of the Transportation Security Administration blasted the agency, calling the incident an example of the TSA overreacting. In hopes of stifling the uproar, the TSA released a photo of the watch last week. This is no ordinary timepiece. It includes a toggle switch, wires and what look like tiny fuses attached to the wristband.

Ford Motor Co. board member Edsel Ford II plans to buy DaimlerChrysler Aviation, a private air service owned by the German American auto maker, said a source familiar with the negotiations. The deal would not include the sale of DaimlerChrysler Aviation's six jets, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The deal includes the facilities at Oakland County International Airport in Waterford, Mich., which employ about 200 people.