Boring, boring, boring – that’s how this week has been. At least you could have had that impression when you skimmed through the airport headlines that had come our way this week. But – and this is important now – you can always rely on LateDeparture to dig up something that’s worthwhile reading. And, oh boy, did we find a couple of jewels!

First of all – and yes, this is still slightly boring, but please bear with us –  the story about Lambert airport in St. Louis (IATA: STL) winning the TSA award “airport of the year” for its security. Well, there isnt’ really much more to it than this apart from – maybe – Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge smiling from an online article in the St Louis Business Journal for also winning the airport director award for Lambert’s response during the tornado that struck the airport earlier this year.

Now it gets better: USA Today reported this week that it seems possible for a second airport bearing Ronald Reagan’s name. Still boring you reckon? Not so much, we think, as this new airport is way outside of the United States. According to the article, the airport would be in Lithuania, where officials say they’re considering adding the late U.S. president’s name to their local Siauliai International Airport (IATA: SQQ) near the small Lithuanian city of Siauliai. How about that?

Before we get to 2 juicy stories, let’s get this one out of the way: on Thursday Los Angeles Times  wrote about the upcoming opening of the new terminal at John Wayne Airport in O.C. (IATA: SNA). The article unveiled that terminal C is the capstone of $543 million in airport expansion and renovations, first approved by the County Board of Supervisors in 2004. For the most part, the project has been delivered on time and within budget.

Okay, here we go now. First up is the shocking news that the lost and later found JFK pet “Jack the Cat” (we wrote about it here and here) died this week. Reuters wrote that the cat who was found two months after his initial disappearance had plummeted through a loose ceiling tile into the airport’s customs office, and was then taken to a veterinarian to be treated for problems resulting from malnutrition. Unfortunately Jack had to be euthanized on Sunday after veterinarians and the owner Pascoe agreed he was too sick to recover.

And finally there was some action in Washington when a man had been taken to a hospital for evaluation after he was spotted walking naked around Washington Dulles International Airport (IATA: IAD). The Washington Post wrote that airport spokeswoman Kimberly Gibbs said the adult male was walking around the main terminal Monday morning and was not wearing clothing or underwear. Airport police took him into custody without incident and determined that he needed medical attention. He was taken to a local hospital.

That wasn’t too painful, was it? Told you! Have a great week everyone!

[Picture from Wikipedia – some rights reserved]