After a mouse was spotted on a plane, the flight was grounded for safety reasons. more ›

A plane from World War II was pulled from Lake Michigan near Waukegan on Friday. The plane was an SBD Dauntless Dive Bomber, used for training. Joseph Lokites was the pilot of the plane, who apparently made a mistake when switching fuel tanks. He switched to an empty tank, the engine stopped, and the plane ditched in the lake. The airplane sank, and Lokites was rescued. more ›

Robert Kadera, the Lincolnshire dad who landed his plane on a golf course to get his son to a tennis lesson, was charged today with reckless conduct and endangering the life or health of a child, two misdemeanors, for the March incident. He's scheduled to appear in court May 13, and the FAA's investigation is ongoing. What a putz. [Daily Herald, Trib]
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In a situation only slightly less disgusting and tragically hilarious than the time Dave Matthews Band's waste landed on that tour boat, mysterious "splotches" over a three block radius in Lisle may be human poop and pee. Police in the western suburb are investigating a substance that landed on and often stained roofs, lawns, streets, cars, etc. The yellow and brown stains were described as "the size of the palm of [a] hand." While there's... more ›

Ah, O'Hare. First your flight gets delayed, then there's a stinky but nontoxic cleaning agent used in the terminal, then your plane almost runs into another plane. Indeed, ye olde ORD has the second-highest number of near-collisions of any US airport. And according to a report from the GAO, O'Hare has six runways that don't meet the FAA's "runway safety area standards," and the airport had four "serious incursions," which is when two planes... more ›

Big surprise — the weather is going to be wildly unpredictable on and around Thanksgiving. Holiday travel will most likely be ludicrously difficult for the thousands of weary travelers coming and going in the Midwest via plane, train and automobile. According to Tom, we can expect rain as the week goes on. The rain will probably change to snow on Thanksgiving eve following a low pressure storm that may (or may not?) be moving northeasterly... more ›

$25,000 in new equipment and $75,000 in remodeling is all it will take for McDonald's across the country to begin serving specialty coffees. The Oak Brook-based company announced that it plans to roll out specialty coffees, smoothies and frappes at the company's annual analysts meeting yesterday. McDonald's President Don Thompson announced, "We want to move from beverages as an accompaniment to beverages as a destination," which is funny only to the extent that one can imagine hopping on a plane that's heading to "beverage" as a final destination (we bet there are delicious alcoholic drinks served for free on that flight). more ›

Let's all give a warm welcome to our newest commenter, Mr. Neil Steinberg! A 16-year-old spotted her rapist at Dunkin Donuts and called the police, who promptly arrested him. A flight from here to New York was searched following a bomb threat, and the FBI is investigating non-specific, "third-hand" threats that al-Qaida is planning on attacking Chicago malls during holiday shopping time. Doomsday, Daley, CTA, Springfield...this is pretty much a Mad Libs at this... more ›

We know you head to Beat Kitchen to enjoy the likes of artists like Plane, New Duncan Imperials and Deadstring Brothers. Be prepared for your toddler to start dragging you back out when they hear about the “Concerts for Kids” shows on Sunday afternoons … at the same Beat Kitchen where you were rockin’ the night before. Once a month, Beat Kitchen opens up its concert space for local talent that caters to the younger... more ›

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s … an electric shaver? Low-rise capris? A James Michener book? Holy cripes, DUCK!!! This very well could have been the scenario yesterday in the vicinity of Midway Airport. Seems a Delta plane bound for Atlanta (or “Hotlanta,” as one of our coworkers insists on calling it) experienced a pressure abnormality soon after takeoff. Upon inspection, it was revealed that one of the bin doors holding the luggage at... more ›

Anyone remember last summer when you could send your friends a weird phone message from Samuel L. Jackson about Snakes On A Plane? The company behind that promotion, Chicago-based Varitalk, is back with a similar take on the upcoming Transformers DVD release that lets you send a call from Optimus Prime. Check it out for Monday's biggest (and most awesome-est) time suck.... more ›

ORD Terminal Mystery? more ›

The three Democratic front-runners came to Chicago this week to seek the endorsement of that other labor federation, Change to Win. Barack Obama and John Edwards made their case in person, but erstwhile local gal Hillary Clinton had to settle for phoning it in from Little Rock Arkansas where her plane was stranded. "Back in the '90s when we had a Democratic Congress and we had a Democratic president, we didn't get universal healthcare," Edwards... more ›

Before we had kids, we thought that Babies on a Plane! was a more apt horror movie title. Now that we’re on this side of the aisle, we have a little more perspective and a lot more sympathy for parents trying to get their little ones through a flight. Any parent who has traveled with their child has a bag of tricks to get them through the actual flight: bringing along favorite toys, finally relinquishing... more ›

It was a Tuesday — a beautiful, sunny Tuesday at that. Most likely, most of the United States was getting ready for or just starting an average Tuesday in September. And then, the unthinkable happened. Two planes hit the World Trade Center towers in New York. Another plane crashed into the Pentagon, and yet another plane was crashed in Pennsylvania. The country was legitmately in "shock and awe." However, there were those of us who... more ›

The search continues today for extreme sporting adventurer and former Chicago options trader Steve Fossett, who has been missing since Monday. Fossett was visiting the Flying M Ranch near Yerington, Nev., scouting for dry lake beds that could be used for breaking a land-speed record. He was piloting a Single Engine Bellanca Citabria Super Decathlon, a two-seat aerobatic plane, for his reconnaissance flight. The aircraft had over five hours of fuel on board when it... more ›

The most popular museum in the world is the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., which sees nearly 9 million visitors come through its doors each year. So it is no surprise that Chicago's Annual Air & Water Show is the largest two-day spectator event in the United States, with audience numbers reaching nearly 2.5 million. The free annual event is back for its 49th edition and has a great line-up ready to... more ›

For a long time, local band Plane seemed terrified of any sort of classification. They moved from simple pop, to noise rock, to meandering sonic experimentation, and back. But while their albums seemed slightly fractured, their live sets always maintained a common thread, and often betrayed just where frontman Edgars Legzdins' head was at, at least for that evening. On the flip side, we have Office, long headed by Scott Masson with a rotating cast... more ›

This month we asked you ladies and gents to judge a book by its cover. We chose Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. Gross. Actually, although reading in the heat about the "gamy" and "slightly sweet" smell of rotting human flesh did make us feel faint at times, we found Stiff to be thoroughly engrossing (no pun intended). Mary Roach's forays into cadaver research and the body farm were all precise and detailed without... more ›

This weekend beach goers will have the chance to view a little bit of history flying overhead. The Wings of Freedom Tour is bringing their B-17 Flying Fortress, B-24 Liberator and B-25 Mitchell World War II aircraft to the Chicagoland area. The airplanes will be based at Chicago Executive Airport (formerly Palwaukee) from Friday through Monday and conducting flights up and down the lake front. These unique planes will be on display at Chicago Executive... more ›

What's Carl's Itinerary? more ›

Parking rates at many downtown garages and lots have gone up in the last year, keeping pace with increasing demand for office space and nudged by residential development and price increases. We thought you could drop out after 16 if you wanted ... A state law that went into effect July 1 will revoke the licenses of students who have more than 18 unexcused absences from school, are expelled or drop out. It's part... more ›

It seems sort of cruel to make everyone get up so early tomorrow after a night rockin’ out to Spiderland, but we’re gonna give some reasons why it may be advisable to set that alarm and crawl out of bed for a few minutes to spend money. The Cure has been one of our favorites since we picked up that Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me album at the mall with our allowance money. We... more ›

It is now a little after noon, which means the second Chicago location of Pollo Campero is now open for business at 4830 N. Pulaski Ave. What are you waiting for? Go try it out and let us know how it is, will you? more ›

The Hideout plays host tonight to two of Chicago’s brightest independent collectives, Skybox and Plane. The latter have been on the Chicago and national radar since their 2004 album Shake My Ground debuted at #42 on the CMJ charts, but the going wasn't as smooth after that. Fans and critics alike were puzzled by the alternatingly hooky pop and quizzical experimentation on 2005’s follow up EP, Hello More. Never fear, however – Plane has clearly... more ›

Before you continue reading, we want you to raise your right arm, take your index finger, place it on the top of your head and begin to scratch. A woman visiting Chicago from Tennessee was arrested yesterday morning after attempting to visit the Skydeck of the Sears Tower with a loaded gun in her purse. When passing through the metal detector, it was discovered the she was packing a .38-caliber revolver. She was taken into... more ›

Edward Kearns spent Father's Day in jail Sunday. Kearns, who owes more than $112,000 in child support for three kids, was among 130 deadbeat dads who were arrested by Cook County Sheriff's Police during a week-long "Operation Father's Pay." Pretty bizarre: An off-duty Chicago police officer has been found dead in a gangway near his home in Pilsen; They think he possibly fell off his deck. Businesses are making way for Barney's and those... more ›

What do The Gap, American Airlines, the main titles for Little Miss Sunshine and Royal Bank of Scotland have in common? They all use the same typeface: Helvetica. Born in 1957 its clean, "neutral" look was revolutionary. 50 years later, and it's omnipresent. If you keep your eyes peeled you'll see it everywhere around you, on practically every city street, in every newspaper and magazine and, most of all, in advertising. Why? As Finlo... more ›

Qannik, a six-year-old beluga whale arrived at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium early Sunday after a flight on a chartered military transport plane from his previous home at Chicago's John G. Shedd Aquarium. A deadly shooting on a CTA bus is now the inspiration for a new proposed federal law to create a national database of all gun owners to keep guns out of the wrong hands. He didn't have a peg leg. There's... more ›