FAA response expected on airport deal

June Casagrande

The city should get an answer by the end of the year on whether

the Federal Aviation Administration will support the modified John

Wayne Settlement Agreement extension. But administration officials

are hush on what their answer will be.

“I don’t have a specific date we expect to respond, but it will be

in the very near term, probably before the end of the year,” said

Paul Turk, a spokesman for the administration.

Mayor Steve Bromberg said Tuesday that he has seen a draft of the

letter the administration is preparing to send to Newport Beach and

believes it will be great news for Newport Beach.

City leaders are hoping to receive a letter saying that

administration believes the proposed settlement agreement extension

is consistent with federal law. Local officials say that’s the

next-best thing to a guarantee that the agency won’t sue to overturn

flight and passenger caps at the airport.

On Tuesday, the City Council and the Orange County Board of

Supervisors both voted unanimously to raise caps at the airport as a

trade off for airlines’ approval. Representatives of the Air

Transport Assn., which represents the airlines, gave verbal

assurances last week to county officials that the airlines would

encourage the FAA to support the deal.

“This is major,” said Orange County Supervisor Jim Silva, who

represents Newport-Mesa. “Considering the growth in the county, the

caps that will be in place I think will be very, very comforting to

the people that live under the flight path.”

But not everyone is as upbeat.

“We’re facing a 30% increase in flights. To me, that spells an

aviation disaster,” resident Ann Watt said Tuesday.

Former Mayor Tom Edwards said he believes the deal puts the

current restrictions in jeopardy because it removes caps that would

otherwise have been in place through 2005.

“I’m sorely disappointed,” Edwards said.

The agreement approved Tuesday would allow up to 10.8-million

passengers a year to fly out of the airport. The current cap is 8.4

million.

The proposed settlement agreement extension, which some officials

believe would have been challenged in court, allowed up to 9.8

million.

The new deal also would allow up to 20 gates. The last proposed

extension would have allowed 18. Currently, there are 14.

But those changes are minor to what could happen, officials say.

“If we did lose [a lawsuit], it would mean open skies over Newport

Beach,” Bromberg said.

* JUNE CASAGRANDE covers Newport Beach and John Wayne Airport.

She may be reached at (949) 574-4232 or by e-mail at

[email protected].