Airport Debate

On my 10-minute cab ride home from John Wayne Airport recently, I

realized something: I live 10 minutes from a major metropolitan airport.

For a traveler, it cannot get any better than that. Although I have

always been “pro” El Toro (what a great opportunity for the future) and

support an airport at Camp Pendleton (makes sense jointly for Orange and

San Diego counties), the fact is that we all already have a wonderful

facility right in our own backyard.

JWA is convenient, clean, efficient, never too crowded and served by

all of the major airlines. Although I live in Newport’s Back Bay area

near the flight path, the jet noise is minimal as long as a reasonable

curfew continues to be maintained. I now would support JWA’s expansion to

28 gates serving 15 million to 20 million passengers as the way to do our

part for regional air traffic growth and a way to plan for the future of

Orange County. Even with the expansion of JWA, Newport will still remain

as a great place to live. Ten minutes to the airport works for me.

STEVE M. STEC

Newport Beach

No one should tell someone to have airport

A little common sense is in order on this whole airport issue. For one

thing, if the city of Newport Beach’s City Council (and I have been a

resident of Newport for 40 years) would take one half of what it is

spending on supporting an airport at El Toro and spend it on improving

the most important resource we have, our harbor, we’d all be a whole lot

better off.

Second, who are we to tell someone else whether they should or should

not have an airport? What if Irvine and those surrounding El Toro began a

campaign to tell us whether we should or should not have a harbor?

Finally, I am in hopes that the council and the Board of Supervisors

will recognize that John Wayne Airport is fine; limitations on flights

are fine (even Sydney, Australia’s airport, has essentially the same

restrictions as John Wayne), and that not everyone needs to fly any time

he or she wants. Just like we don’t really have to talk on cell phones

any time and anyplace.

A little common sense, please.

DAVID A. GRANT

Newport Beach

Not much of a difference with airport measures

Both sides have agreed to no further expenditures of public funds on

the El Toro issue before March 5, Newport Beach Councilman Gary Proctor

said (Briefly in the news -- “Newport, AWG close to settlement,” Jan.

24.) This is different from the Measure F campaign in 2000.

During the Measure F campaign, at my home, I received 10 fliers for

Measure F, two fliers for the park, and four fliers against the airport.

That’s 16 fliers in one month. About half of them were taxpayer-funded.

During the same time, there were only six fliers against Measure F, and

they were privately funded. I hope things are different this time.

DONALD NYRE

Newport Beach

Columnist a bit hasty in his opinions

Columnist Jim de Boom has every right to express his opinion of

Measure W and certainly it is an emotionally charged issue (Communities &

Clubs, “A matter of the heart,” Jan. 26). But he might want to check his

facts in future columns on the subject.

He claims there will be pressure to add runways (plural) at John

Wayne. We have been told definitively by the Airport Working Group that

there is no room to add a single runway at JWA, much less more than one.

He says there will be pressure to add passenger capacity. Such

additional capacity has already been offered by the Airport Working Group

and the city of Newport Beach in exchange for keeping curfews at JWA past

their current expiration of 2005.

He says there will be pressure to make JWA operate 24 hours. If there

is, it won’t come from agencies promoting Measure W, which are on record

as supporting the continuation of curfews at JWA. Whether or not those

curfews continue is a legal issue, apart from anything to do with Measure

W.

De Boom maintains El Toro would provide “lower air fares, more

destinations than John Wayne Airport by itself can provide” and would

have “less effects on its neighbors.” There is no factual information to

support any of those three claims.

In fact, residents of Irvine would not, under any circumstances, be

able to avail themselves of curfews at El Toro, as it is illegal for any

airport built since 1990 to have curfews without the consent of all

participating air carriers; the airlines have shown no interest in

curfews at El Toro.

And since the prevailing head winds are with the western runway

(pointed toward Irvine and Newport Beach/Newport Coast) and since the

Federal Aviation Administration gives final authority in runway selection

to the pilot, we can assume the pilots’ choice will most often be to take

off over Irvine, any time of the day or night.

Newport Beach has, at least, a chance of maintaining curfews at JWA.

There will never be the same opportunity for Irvine residents. De Boom’s

column shows the reasons why Irvine voters oppose an airport at El Toro.

WILLIAM DETOY

Irvine