5 Airports Turned Over to Private Management

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to turn management of the county’s five airports over to a private company for the next 20 years, despite pleas from pilots and county employees not to act hastily. The 3-2 vote drew a groan from those who had come to the meeting to question the need for privatization, saying they feared it could lead to higher hangar rents and fuel rates.

“A major concern to us is what the new contract is going to cost us,” said Wallace Goltry, a member of the pilot’s association at Whiteman Airport in Pacoima.

But most of the supervisors said they could not ignore the advantages of letting Comarco, an Anaheim-based defense contractor, manage the facilities in Pacoima, Lancaster, El Monte, Compton and La Verne. Under the contract approved Tuesday, the county stands to receive at least $2.8 million annually, about $500,000 more than it now earns by operating the airports.