Keep the Marines on El Toro Air Base
* Brig. Gen. Jay W. Hubbard’s Orange County Voices piece (“A Chance To Rethink El Toro’s Fate,” April 6) was right on target but I wish more light had been shed on a couple of issues.
Remember Kobe, Japan, and then picture Orange County. Then think what 80 to 100 Marine helicopters could mean if the county suffered a similar massive earthquake.
What good is El Toro if not for an airport? It is the only land remaining that could easily be adapted as a future Orange County airport and it is fairly certain that the present John Wayne Airport will be outgrown at some time.
But that time, in view of the county’s recent bankruptcy, appears to be a very long way off, so we should press our politicians to finally be statesmen and take a stand on this issue and let our longtime good neighbors, the Marines, stay in place.
There is one Californian on the BRAC ’95 Commission, Rebecca Cox, a vice president of Continental Airlines and the wife of Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach). Everyone should try to convince her and the commission to save El Toro for the Marines, which would also save at least $1 billion tax dollars in the bargain.
J. T. BERTRAND
Newport Beach
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