Study Opposes Limit on Jets at Van Nuys

The Los Angeles City Council should reject a proposed law limiting the numbers of noisier jets at Van Nuys Airport because it would financially cripple the airfield, according to a long-awaited study released Monday by the Los Angeles Department of World Airports.

The study’s conclusions triggered an angry response from anti-noise activists, who more than a year ago nearly succeeded in getting the council to implement a so-called non-addition rule, which would prohibit an increase in the number of Stage 2 jets--older and noisier planes--based at the airport.

Instead, a council committee ordered the study, pleasing aviation interests who had argued that the proposed rule could cost 400 jobs and a loss of $100 million in annual airport-generated revenues.

The report, prepared by a New Jersey consulting firm, Airport Corp. of America, supports those claims, estimating potential losses of up to 565 jobs and more than $190 million within three years.

Some homeowner representatives immediately criticized the study, saying it was written without factual basis and founded on conjecture by aviation interests.

“That’s like going to the penitentiary and asking the convicts what they think of the penal system,” said anti-noise campaigner Gerald Silver of Encino.

But airport officials defended the report, saying it shows an unexpectedly large turnover of aircraft based at Van Nuys, and that restrictions on aircraft replacements could have wide-ranging implications.

According to the report, from 1995 through 1997, 34 out of 51 Stage 2 jets left their base at Van Nuys and were replaced by 36 other Stage 2 jets. If the rule had been in force, the replacement jets would have been prohibited, causing a significant loss in jobs and revenue and possibly closure of some businesses.

The report concludes that operating limitations “should not be implemented at Van Nuys Airport because of the very real and severe negative economic impact they will have on the airport, its users/tenants and the region.”

Airport Executive Director John J. Driscoll said his staff is considering “various options” to reduce noise without sacrificing aviation businesses. He declined to say what options may be considered but said he has asked the staff “to take another good, hard look” at potential alternatives.

“We want to try to balance this situation so that we do, in fact, address the concerns of the community but also maintain a viable economic engine,” Driscoll said Monday.

The report and its ramifications are scheduled to be discussed today before the Van Nuys Airport Citizens Advisory Council, an 18-member appointed group representing homeowners, businesses and aviation interests. The 7 p.m. meeting will be held at the Airtel Plaza Hotel, on the edge of the airport at Sherman Way and Valjean Avenue.

Coby King, an advisory council member appointed by Councilwoman Laura Chick, a leading supporter of the non-addition rule, said Monday that results of the study may indicate the rule as written is not workable. Although he had not yet seen the full report, King said he was surprised by the conclusions in an executive summary.

“If the figures in the report are correct, the adoption of the rule would appear to have a devastating and unacceptable impact on the airport and the surrounding businesses, and I could not support recommending its adoption,” said King, a communications executive and Encino resident, whose own home is overflown by aircraft from Van Nuys.

The non-addition rule, as well as a gradual phaseout of noisier aircraft, was proposed at Van Nuys in 1989. The issue has been stalled by political and regulatory debates for the past decade. However, the Federal Aviation Administration in August 1997 agreed to permit restrictions on Stage 2 aircraft.

The rule, as well as an extended curfew at Van Nuys, was approved by the Board of Airport Commissioners in October 1997 and was scheduled for almost immediate adoption and implementation by the City Council.

The council approved moving back the start of the curfew, which prohibits nonemergency takeoffs of Stage 2 jets, from 11 p.m. to 10 p.m. But a council committee postponed action on the non-addition rule until completion of the updated economic impact report.

Driscoll said he expects new recommendations to be sent to airport commissioners and the City Council “in the near future.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Stage 2 Aircraft at Van Nuys Airport

Despite high turnover, the number of Stage 2 aircraft has remained fairly steady for the last three years. A non-addition rule would have prevented replacement Stage 2 aircraft from being based at Van Nuys Airport. An older aircraft exceeding a noice level of 77 decibels upon takeoff is classified as Stage 2.

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Actual number of Stage 2 aircraft based at Van Nuys airport, without non-addition rule:

1995: 51

1997: 53

4% increase

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Projected number of Stage 2 aircraft based at Van Nuys airport if non-addition rule were imposed in 1995:

1995: 51

1997: 17

67% decrease

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Source: Airport Corp. of America