CASH LANDINGS: Negotiators didn’t say immediately what...

CASH LANDINGS: Negotiators didn’t say immediately what landing fee was agreed to by airlines and L. A. officials to head off that threat to close LAX (A1). The city wanted three times the current rate (above) and nearly twice the fee at Burbank Airport--which is apparently now free of the prospect of handling some of LAX’s holiday load.

HEAD GAMES: Could this be the start of a triumphant comeback for Taft High School’s academic decathlon coach, Arthur Berchin, who led Taft to the national championship in 1989? . . . With Berchin back, the Taft squad--which finished second nationally last year under a successor--swept up the city championship by the highest score in the event’s history (B1).

LAPD U.: Proposals for a police academy in the Valley are getting last touches before city officials make a decision. The LAPD is pushing hard for a site in Sylmar, making changes to win over neighbors . . . like putting the pistol range and pursuit-driving course elsewhere (B14).

PALE FIRE: 20th Century Insurance escaped getting badly burned in the brush fires. The big Woodland Hills company received only 55 claims for a comparatively cheap $4.5 million. A big reason: the company’s longstanding policy of refusing to insure homes in brushy areas. . . . The company has to pony up another $2.6 million, however, for an insurance industry co-op fund.

HARD-BOILED BURDEN: It’s a staple image of American fiction, the hard-boiled cop unmoved by tragedy, walling out misery with a “just the facts, Ma’am” attitude. As heart-rending horrors increase though, the price of wall-building goes up. The LAPD’s psychologist is seeing twice as many officers as three years ago. . . . The Street Beat column (B2) visits the police therapist.

Landing Fees

The proposed fee hikes at LAX would place it second behind John Wayne Airport. Landing fees per 1,000 pounds at area airports: John Wayne: $1.66 LAX (new): $1.56 Ontario: $0.91 Burbank: $0.84 LAX (former): $0.51 Source: Airports