New Airports Chief Faces a Weighty Issue : Aviation: The recently named administrator must decide whether a restored, 72,000-pound transport is too big to use the Camarillo runway.

When newly named Ventura County Airports Administrator Rod Murphy arrives on the job Monday, one of his first decisions will be whether an aging warhorse of an airplane, now lovingly restored to fighting form, is too heavy to take off from Camarillo Airport.

If he makes the wrong call, a catastrophic accident could occur, endangering crew, airplane and the airport’s runway, county officials say.

Murphy, who was appointed to the $68,562-a-year post by the Board of Supervisors last month, must determine not only whether the runway is strong enough to permit the newly restored Lockheed Super Constellation military transport to leave the airport, but also whether it should regularly fly in and out of the airport.

The huge, four-engine aircraft--known as the Boeing 747 of its day and one of three left in the world--weighs more than 72,000 pounds. Because of the plane’s weight, county officials fear that the runway might collapse during takeoff.

Murphy, who has been director of the Riverside Department of Airports, declined to comment on the issue Thursday.

County officials’ fears were allayed somewhat April 29 when a consultant’s report tentatively said the runway could support the plane. A final report on the condition of the runway is due today.

“This whole issue has become very emotional, and people have said a lot of things back and forth,” said Michael Musca, an administrative officer with the Department of Airports. “But our concern has been on safety. We were very concerned that the runway would fail underneath this aircraft. Until we know for sure, why take chances?”

But Jerry Doyle, general manager of the Constellation Historical Society, a nonprofit group that has overseen the aircraft’s three-year restoration, discounted the official’s concerns. Doyle said his big plane does not pose a danger to the runway, initially built to handle a variety of military aircraft when it was the former Oxnard Air Force Base before 1975.

“We have spent thousands and thousands of volunteer hours preparing this grand old lady for flight again. Now that she’s nearly ready, all we have encountered is red tape,” Doyle said. “They talk about safety like it was something foreign to us. We want to stay here, but how much more of this stuff we will take is a question.”

The plane, with its 150-foot wingspan, was successfully towed April 29 along a taxiway from its storage site on the airport’s eastern edge to the western side. But during a trial run of its four engines, one of the power plants incurred a small electrical fire and had to be shut down.

“The fire was a minor glitch,” Doyle said. “It’s the fact that we towed her across the airport without a problem should be evidence enough that she can use this airport.”

Doyle said the small engine fire will delay the plane’s readiness for flight by about a month.

John R. Mikels, chairman of the Ventura County Aviation Advisory Commission, said many pilots in the county support the Constellation project but remain concerned about safety.

“I think the consensus among most of the pilots in the county is that we would like to see the Connie stay here,” Mikels said. “The preliminary look at the runway (by the consultant) would seem to support a limited number of operations for the Constellation.”

But while Mikels said he understands airport officials’ desire to leave the decision to Murphy, Hal Geer, a fellow commission member, thought that the delays have been unfair to the historical society.

“I understand their reluctance to stick their necks out until Rod arrives,” Geer said. “But I also think that, in some cases, the bureaucracy just doesn’t listen to common sense. I think this may be one of those cases.”

Historical society officials also say the delays have prevented the Constellation from being part of the national air show circuit--a critical source of funding for the restoration, upkeep and flight operations of the aircraft. Doyle estimated that if the Constellation could have been at last weekend’s El Toro Air Show, the event could have raised as much as $100,000 for the society.

Doyle said the society’s C-121C Super Constellation, once again spit-polished to a high shine and replete with military markings, first saw service in the 1950s as part of the U. S. Military Air Transport Service, the U. S. Air Force and finally the Mississippi Air National Guard. It was used during the Korean conflict and the Vietnam War.

After being retired from military service in the early 1970s, the society’s plane changed owners a few times, eventually ending up as a crop duster in 1973.

In 1976, the plane was placed in storage, where it remained until late 1982, when it was purchased by historical society President Daryoush (Benny) Younesi of Van Nuys. In 1984, the aircraft was flown to Camarillo Airport and placed in storage until the society’s restoration project began in 1991.