Planes

Pluses The Chicago Blackhawks' point streak from the start of the season, which ended Friday at 21-0-3, was extraordinary for many reasons. Thirteen players had at least one game-winning goal and Patrick Kane scored a team-leading 27 points. The most goals the Hawks gave up was four, to Phoenix on Jan. 20, and they scored five or more five times. They gave up only nine power-play goals and yielded two in a game only once, to the Kings on Feb. 17. Before losing to Colorado, the Blackhawks had won a franchise-record 11 straight games — and their franchise entered the NHL in 1926.

A plan to allow small knives on commercial planes continued to spur a backlash Monday, with a Massachusetts lawmaker threatening to introduce a bill to halt the policy change. Transportation Security Administration announced last week that starting April 25 it would allow passengers to carry small folding knives, with blades no more than 2.36 inches in length and 1/2 inches wide, as well as various sporting gear, such as golf clubs. Congressman Ed Markey (D-Mass.) plans to hold a news conference at Boston's Logan International Airport on Tuesday to add his voice to the chorus of opponents of the change.

A move by federal officials to allow passengers to board planes carrying pocket knives has sparked a backlash by airline workers and is sowing confusion among travelers. The union representing air marshals has joined flight attendants, pilots and airline insurance firms in calling on the Transportation Security Administration to reconsider its decision to relax a list of prohibited carry-on items. More than 12,000 people have signed an online petition urging President Obama to keep knives off planes.

For the first time since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, federal airport screeners will allow passengers to carry onto a plane small knives, as well as golf clubs, hockey sticks and pool cues. The policy change, which will take effect April 25, was immediately criticized by flight attendants, who say the move will create an unnecessary risk and further crowd the already limited space in the overhead bins. "While we agree that a passenger wielding a small knife or swinging a golf club or hockey stick poses less of a threat to the pilot locked in the cockpit, these are real threats to passengers and flight attendants in the passenger cabin," said Stacy K. Martin, president of Southwest Airlines' flight attendants union, TWU Local 556. In a statement, the Transportation Security Administration said the change will help align the list of prohibited items on U.S. flights with those of international carriers and cut the time passengers spend going through security screening.

SAN DIEGO - Two defense contractors and a corporation have been found guilty of being part of a fraud and bribery scheme involving phony payments for the repair of military aircraft at North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado. Robert Ehnow and Joanne Loehr, owners of Poway-based companies, were convicted Monday of showering Navy officials with gifts and cash in exchange for millions of dollars in payments for work supposedly done on planes at the Fleet Readiness Center. Loehr's firm, Centerline Industrial Inc., also was convicted.

A long-anticipated merger of American Airlines and US Airways that would create the nation's largest carrier may be announced as early as this week, sources say. The union of Fort Worth-based American and Tempe, Ariz.-based US Airways would create a carrier with as many as 120,000 employees and a fleet of nearly 1,000 planes. The boards of the two airlines are expected to meet in the next few days to vote on the proposed merger, sources have told Los Angeles Times and other news outlets.

Los Angeles County prosecutors on Tuesday accused singer Chris Brown of failing to complete his court-ordered community service for his 2009 assault conviction and questioned whether the documents submitted as proof of his service were fraudulent. A motion filed by the district attorney's office said that Brown claimed he completed four hours of trash pickup between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on one day when he was actually on a private plane to Cancun that he boarded at 4 p.m. On another day that the entertainer said he was picking up trash in a Richmond, Va., alley, news photographers were snapping him 100 miles away in Washington, D.C., where he hosted a charity event that raised funds for the developmentally disabled, prosecutors contended.

The future of American Airlines is still unclear. Will it merge with Tempe, Ariz.-based U.S. Airways or try to go it alone when it exits bankruptcy in the next few weeks? Whatever happens in Bankruptcy Court, the Fort Worth-based carrier will definitely have a new look. Last month American unveiled a new logo and livery, featuring a silver mica color for its planes and red, white and blue stripes on the tails. The airline also announced recently that it would introduce new crew uniforms created by a pair of designers who have dressed celebrities such as Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Halle Berry and Jennifer Aniston.

Despite numerous incidents and high-profile fires involving lithium-ion batteries on its new 787 Dreamliner passenger jet, aerospace giant Boeing Co. defended installing the technology on the plane and vowed to quickly determine what went wrong. The 787 has been grounded since Jan. 16 by the Federal Aviation Administration because of problems with onboard lithium-ion batteries. Investigators around the world are looking into the matter. In a conference call announcing Boeing's fourth-quarter earnings, Chief Executive James McNerney said the company is working with customers and the regulatory agencies to get the matter resolved but is not permitted to comment directly on the ongoing investigations.