County Lobbies for Trial, Cargo Flights at El Toro

Orange County officials arrived in Washington late Tuesday armed with recommendations from the Marine commander of El Toro to allow demonstration flights by commercial jets and interim cargo service later this year.

The recommendations by Maj. Gen. Robert Magnus must be signed by the secretary of the Navy, who also must approve a separate agreement before the county can take over management of the base after the Marines leave in July.

Half a dozen county officials--including Board of Supervisors Chairman Charles V. Smith, Supervisor Jim Silva and County Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier--are in Washington to lobby for all of those pivotal agreements with Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy William J. Cassidy Jr.

The county representatives exulted over written pledges by Magnus, commander of the Marine Corps’ western region, to recommend “favorable consideration” for future demonstration and cargo flights.

The thumbs-up is significant because the Marines still will own the base after military operations cease and must approve any activity there.

“This is great news,” said Courtney Wiercioch, manager of the county’s El Toro development office.

Meanwhile, South County cities fighting the county’s plans to convert El Toro to a commercial airport sent their own letter to Cassidy threatening to file a lawsuit against the Navy if it approves demonstration or cargo flights.

Anti-airport forces contend that the county cannot begin any type of civilian flights at El Toro until final state and federal environmental reviews are concluded and the property is deeded to the county, expected in late 2000.

The El Toro Reuse Planning Authority, comprising seven anti-airport cities, also has threatened to sue the State Lands Commission if it agrees to a request by the Navy to transfer police powers at the base from federal to state control.

“The long-term prospect for this airport is a slow death,” anti-airport attorney Richard Jacobs said.

Last month, the Board of Supervisors in a split vote agreed to a plan for interim uses of the base, including daily flights by three small-package carriers and leasing out the base golf course, officers’ club and other facilities.

The board, on an identical split vote with Supervisors Tom Wilson and Todd Spitzer dissenting, also approved spending more than $2 million on demonstration flights by a variety of commercial jets.

The board majority, consisting of Smith, Silva and Supervisor Cynthia Coad, said the tests would give South County residents a way to judge how loud the planes are as they take off and land at the airfield.

Once fully built, the airport is expected to handle 24 million passengers a year on domestic and international flights.

Magnus told Smith by letter Friday that he will recommend that the flight demonstrations be exempted from an environmental review because their impact would be minimal. However, the cargo-flight plan must be assessed to determine if a larger environmental review is warranted, Magnus said.

Jacobs said full environmental reviews on the entire airport project are critical before any nonmilitary flights are approved. Even limited commercial flights represent crucial steps toward eventual full-blown airport operations, he said.

The South County coalition also argued in its letter to Cassidy that noise and cargo flights before the property is deeded to the county would violate a 1990 federal law written by Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach) that bars joint military and civilian operations at El Toro.

Cox said Tuesday that the law was written to address simultaneous commercial and military operations and would not apply once El Toro no longer is designated as an air station. Marine officials said military operations will end on July 2 and the land will be redesignated.