It's been a long fight to keep Oceanside Municipal Airport open, but local pilots and AOPA aren't about to give up - and they've got the support of some powerful allies.
Rep. Darrell Issa |
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), an AOPA member who represents the district where Oceanside is located, is objecting to the city's decision to hire a consultant to study the "best use" of the land that now houses Oceanside Municipal and determine how to close the field if the city decides to do so. He took his objections straight to the top in a letter sent to FAA Administrator Marion Blakey on Wednesday.
"I believe this plan is costly, ill advised, and not in the best interest of local taxpayers," Issa wrote. "Instead I would urge the FAA to work with the airport, the city council, and local pilots to ensure the airport continues to serve my constituents to its fullest potential."
AOPA has been working with the FAA and urging similar cooperation at the embattled airport for years, weighing in against a variety of schemes to close the airport or severely restrict access to the field.
Oceanside has accepted federal grant money that requires the airport to remain open until 2024. The city also received federal money to purchase land for the airport in 2001 - that money came with an obligation to keep the land for airport purposes in perpetuity.
October 27, 2005