GOOD NEWS

Come Sunday, 479 U.S. troops a day will be leaving Iraq and surrounding countries in the military’s “rest and recuperation” program, a boost from the 270 troops a day who have traveled home for vacations since the program started in late September...

Also Sunday, troops leaving Kuwait on the military-chartered civilian planes can fly to two new airports that signed up in the program. The flights will go to Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport in Georgia, and for those needing to go farther west, they can fly to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Texas...

On Saturday, troops can begin collecting free commercial airline tickets to wherever they need to go through a program sponsored by U.S. Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., called “Operation Hero Miles,” in which travelers donate frequent-flier miles so troops returning on R&R don’t have to pay their own fares.

As of Thursday, more than 4 million miles had been donated through the program’s Web site, www.heromiles.org, said Heather Moeder Molino, the congressman’s spokeswoman. Donors gave millions more directly through the three participating airlines, which are Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines. Delta, with a hub in Atlanta, donated 10 million miles when it joined the program, Moeder Molino said.