Malathion Dogfight Ends With Scarcely a Whimper

In the end, it was more an exchange of polite radio messages than outright war.

On one side of the strange aerial dance that took place Thursday in the dark morning skies above Pasadena were six state helicopters, carrying a load of malathion for a 53-square-mile assault on the Mediterranean fruit fly.

On the other side was a single Pasadena police helicopter buzzing nearby, waiting to enforce a new and novel city ordinance designed to stop malathion spraying by banning low-flying aircraft.

Just before 1 a.m., both sides met. The air-to-air radios crackled.

“Yes sir,” Pasadena Police Lt. Terry Blumenthal messaged. “This is the Pasadena Police Department. . . . We have you flying in formation over Pasadena below 700 feet in violation of ordinance No. 9.42.010 and I have to ask you to, uh . . . cease and desist.”

“Affirmative,” a state pilot answered briskly. “We acknowledge your transmission.”

“OK, thank you very much,” the officer said. A long pause. “I assume that means you’re going to keep on spraying?”

“That is correct.”

“OK. Thank you,” Blumenthal answered.

End of confrontation.

In the first test of Pasadena’s ordinance, the fleeting aerial confrontation between the city and the state of California was more a dainty waltz than what one state official had jokingly dubbed earlier “a showdown in the air.”

“It’s all very civilized,” said Gera Curry, spokeswoman for the state Department of Food and Agriculture.

Other than some posturing by officials on both sides of the simmering issue, little actually happened. No citations were issued and the state pilots did not miss a beat in their pesticide spraying.

“We’ve got a job to do and we understand they have a job to do,” said Pasadena police spokesman Gregg Henderson, adding that the city prosecutor may file a case against the state pilots in Pasadena Municipal Court next week. “No reason to get mad about it.”

But in an unexpected move Thursday, just hours after the spraying ended, Gov. George Deukmejian, Department of Food and Agriculture Director Henry Voss, Department of Health Services Director Kenneth W. Kizer and Assemblyman Pat Nolan (R-Glendale) arrived in Pasadena to discuss the issue of malathion spraying with city officials.

But after the one-hour session at the Doubletree Hotel ended, neither side had budged.

The governor said the spraying will continue and Pasadena officials said they have no intention of repealing the ordinance.

Pasadena’s aerial maneuvering with the state is one of the strangest incidents yet in the growing opposition to aerial malathion spraying.

Numerous cities have passed resolutions against the spraying, fired off protest letters to the governor and even sued the state to try to ground the helicopters.

On Thursday, the cities of Los Angeles, Glendale and Burbank and the Natural Resource Defense Council formally filed two separate suits in Los Angeles Superior Court in an attempt to stop the spraying.

But Pasadena has taken a different tack, creating a seemingly incomprehensible ordinance outlawing formation flying of aircraft below 700 feet between half an hour after sunset and half an hour before sunrise without city permission.

State and federal officials jumped on the ordinance, saying it was legally ridiculous, because the city has no authority to control air traffic.

But Pasadena Vice Mayor Jess Hughston said: “We may not stop the spraying, but we’re going to give it a shot. We’re not going to roll over and play dead.”

The much ballyhooed aerial confrontation was choreographed from the beginning to make sure no one would be hurt.

Police Lt. Blumenthal flew to El Monte hours before the spraying to explain the situation to the state pilots and ask them if they wouldn’t mind spraying Pasadena first to save everyone some time.

“I don’t want to stay up all night,” said the 25-year police veteran.

The pilots politely declined, taking off on schedule at 9 p.m. in their helicopters, each loaded with 175 gallons of pesticide and bait.

Blumenthal and his crew waited at the Pasadena police helipad near Devil’s Gate Dam for word on the squadron of state helicopters, slowly working its way toward Pasadena.

It took four hours but finally, at 12:20 a.m., Blumenthal, Sgt. Tom Oldfield, Cmdr. Donn Burwell and City Director Rick Cole took off to intercept the state helicopters that had just crossed the city line.

Three television news helicopters lifted off after them, with one cameraman hanging out an open door.

“There’s lots of helicopters out there,” one of the Medfly pilots could be heard to say over the radio.

“Dress it up guys, we’re on TV,” another Medfly chopper pilot said.

The aerial confrontation at 12:55 a.m. was short, polite and businesslike. Within 15 minutes the Pasadena helicopter turned back for the police landing pad.

“Mission accomplished,” Cole said as he entered the heliport terminal.

Blumenthal took off again to fly to El Monte Airport to verify the identities of the state pilots and talk with Jim Josephson, pilot and owner of the company contracted by the state to spray malathion.

Blumenthal told Josephson his pilots had violated the law, but that they would not be cited at that time.

After his aircraft was reloaded, Josephson returned to his helicopter and took off with Blumenthal and his crew following behind. But this time, they weren’t in pursuit to enforce the law, only to watch.

They gazed at the Medfly helicopters, staggered in a slanting line called an echelon formation, as they made a pass over a 1,000-foot-wide stretch. They then made a graceful S turn for a return sweep.

“You know, they really do have that down to a science,” said Blumenthal.

“It looks good,” agreed Oldfield.