John Wayne Airport Runway Closed as Bomb Is Removed

The main runway at John Wayne Airport was closed about 35 minutes Monday while the Sheriff’s Department bomb squad removed an unarmed, World War II-era marker bomb that was unearthed by a construction crew.

The bomb, which was found about 20 yards from the main runway, was taken to El Toro Marine Corps Air Station for disposal.

“There was no way it would cause any harm or damage to anyone,” said Gunnery Sgt. Peg Cauley. The Joint Explosive Ordinance Disposal unit at the Marine base inspected the bomb, which was about 10 inches long and four inches in diameter and had fins. It contained no explosive charge, Cauley said.

The marker bombs were not designed to explode on impact, Cauley added. “Mostly they just smoke.”

No Flight Delays

Although the main runway was closed while the bomb was removed, there were no evacuations or flight delays, according to Curtis Porter, airport operations supervisor. An area of about 100 square yards around the site was cordoned off.

Porter said about four such bombs have been found over the last 10 years during construction projects such as the expansion now going on.

“Until you know what it is, you have to treat it as the real thing,” another airport administrator said. “I seriously doubt that it fell out of an airplane,” said the administrator, a World War II pilot, suggesting that it was probably turned over by bulldozers converting the field to civilian use.

There were military air bases on and around the land now occupied by John Wayne Airport, according to “From Jennies to Jets: The Aviation History of Orange County,” by Vi Smith. These included the Santa Ana Army Air Base and auxiliary field, as well as Eddie Martin Airport.

The army stopped flying from area fields in 1946, according to the book, and Eddie Martin Airport, now John Wayne, was turned over to the county by the War Assets Administration in 1948.