Still time for El Toro

In her eloquent letter about El Toro, Bonnie O’Neil seems to assume Newport Beach will remain an airport victim if El Toro is not opened, (“Losing the airport war will spoil our community,” Jan 8.) I believe somewhat the opposite is true, since 60% of Irvine is closer to John Wayne Airport than it is to El Toro.

You see, the runway at John Wayne Airport points in the wrong direction for flights to the east, and without El Toro, pilots can turn and will turn before flying on and on the wrong way.

The upside for no El Toro is that South County becomes available for aviation flying to and from John Wayne Airport. The downside for no El Toro is that an existing airport is not used, and one will have to be built elsewhere. It’s not too late to turn on the lights at an El Toro airport, where owners’ profits will exceed that of building houses and a park.

DONALD NYRE

Newport Beach