American Airlines on Sept. 4 will launch nonstop service between Philadelphia and Bentonville, Ark. The new flights will be operated with Embraer 175 aircraft. American also on May 3 will add two new flights from Columbia, Mo., to Chicago, for a total of four daily flights to the Windy City.

American Airlines has mostly completed its consolidation of the former US Airways into its operations and is now focusing on improving its reliability while continuing to grow profits and manage costs. The carrier's Tech Ops team is supporting these goals by ensuring that each aircraft is ready for the first flight of the day, departs on time and is turned on schedule.

FedEx has teamed with the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City in an effort to support small businesses in Memphis, Tenn. The ICIC operates the Inner City Capital Connections program, which supports small businesses in disadvantaged areas by offering access to capital, coaching and education.

United Airlines has added a third daily flight between Missouri's Columbia Regional Airport and Chicago. The airline said "consumer demand" prompted the increased service.

More than $35 million in improvements at Yeager Airport in Charleston, W. Va., are expected to be completed by the end of August, according to Terry Sayre, the airport's director. Contractors are working on four projects at the airport.

High school students from Florida's Lakeland Aero Club will build a specially modified Zenith 750 for use by Able Flight, which provides scholarships for people with disabilities to learn to fly. The project is part of a new partnership between Able Flight and the Aerospace Center for Excellence, which is the educational component of the SUN 'n FUN Aerospace Expo.

AOPA, along with many pilots, has deemed Utah's Heber Valley Airport the worst in the country in terms of service, fees and fuel prices. The association is addressing moves by Heber City Council that would further diminish competition and the possibility of new commercial development.

Several aviation groups have voiced opposition to the National Transportation Safety Board's recommendation that the Federal Aviation Administration study pilot drug use by anonymously collecting urine samples during physical exams. "Even though the FAA removed the geographic location from the initial urine cup label, the CAMI lab and personnel will be able to identify the AME from which the cup came, eroding the privacy protections of the study," the groups wrote in a letter.

A federal judge on Thursday sentenced Amor Ftouhi, a Canadian citizen, to life in prison for stabbing a police officer at Michigan's Bishop International Airport last year. Ftouhi was convicted of an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, violence at an international airport and interference with airport security.

The number of passengers flying this Easter weekend will be 4.3% greater than the same weekend last year, Airlines for America predicts.