Amercian Airlines panel rethinks star treatment

Amercian Airlines panel rethinks star treatment

American Airlines flies more passengers out of Los Angeles International Airport than any other carrier and wants to maintain that dominance, especially among L.A.’s high-spending glitterati in the entertainment industry.

To do that, American has created a panel of advisers from the entertainment industry to suggest ways the Fort Worth, Texas-based airline can make celebrities and Hollywood big shots happier in the air.

The panel is called the American Airlines Council on Entertainment, and it meets every three months. It includes nearly 30 representatives of the entertainment industry.

Among the changes American has made at the request of the Hollywood panel are healthier in-flight menu choices and a 24-hour service desk for high-profile clients plus private reservation numbers that only a limited number of authorized American workers can access to maintain privacy.

W.Va. foliage reports canceled

CHARLESTON, W.Va.

Officials say the layoffs of 37 West Virginia Division of Forestry workers have led to the cancellation of the division’s annual fall foliage reports.

According to the Charleston Gazette-Mail, West Virginia Department of Commerce marketing and communications director Chelsea Ruby says the forestry division does not have enough staff to produce the weekly reports about changing leaf colors across the state.

Wild, Wonderful West Virginia, West Virginia State Parks and tourism-related businesses are launching a web-based platform to showcase autumn foliage.

Tourism spending increases in Va.

ARLINGTON, Va.

Arlington officials say tourism in the county set a record in 2015, breaking the $3 billion mark.

The county, citing data from the U.S. Travel Association, said visitors spent $3.06 billion in Arlington in 2015. That’s a 3 percent increase from the previous year and the highest total in Virginia.

Fairfax County ranked second with $2.9 billion in tourism spending, according to the study.

Loudoun County ranked third and Virginia Beach fourth.

Arlington County, which sits just across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital, has led the state in economic impact from tourism since 2009.

It accounts for more than 13 percent of all tourism spending in the state.

Arlington National Cemetery, the Pentagon and Air Force memorials and Reagan National Airport are all situated in the county.

Oldest US lighthouse celebrates 300 years

BOSTON

America’s oldest lighthouse station is being honored as it turns 300 years old.

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Paul Zukunft called Boston Light a “landmark that will stand the test of time” at a recent waterfront Boston celebration.

The 89-foot-tall lighthouse was built by the British in 1716, was destroyed during the American Revolution and was rebuilt by the U.S. in 1783.

It’s the Coast Guard’s last manned lighthouse.

Geography quiz

Q. In which country would you visit the capital city of Chisinau?

A. Moldova. The city of about 725,000 people sits in the center of Moldova, which is bordered by Romania and Ukraine. At about 13,090 square miles, Moldova is slightly larger than Maryland.

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