Letters to the Editor: If Hollywood Burbank Airport is No. 1, why can’t we keep it as is?
I awakened recently to read that our airport was named the No. 1 airport in the entire country. There are few regional airports remaining in the U.S., and the charm and convenience and size of our terminal undoubtedly helped the facility win this accolade.
As I considered the reasons, I couldn’t help but regret that our airport terminal is poised to become identical to all other airports. We will have the behemoth metal and glass structure, the shops, the restaurants and an increased number of passengers. This is the realization of a long ongoing quest for increased revenue for the cities of Burbank, Glendale and Pasadena. The rebranding campaign has been expensive and aggressive, and the sales job to the citizens has been transparent and exhausting.
We live under the flight path, which we now share with neighbors all the way to Sherman Oaks. NextGen has not only widened the flight paths, it also allows more planes to depart lower and closer together. The numbers climb, and we all suffer the noise and pollution, particularly the school kids, parks and playgrounds. Curfews are long gone, with 24-hour charter jets roaring throughout the night hours, waking many of us.
Our charming regional airport is appealing to travelers. Why can’t we keep it that way? We need flight caps now, before the new terminal is built. Maybe we don’t need it to be a carbon copy of every other airport terminal. We are promised no new gates, but what about the terminals for freight planes and private charter aircraft? How many more of those are in the proposed new plan? We need the FAA to reconsider all of the flight paths and mitigate the lower, louder departures affecting thousands of us.
Jayne McKay
Burbank
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Re: “Civilian aviation workers, vintage planes should be showcased at new terminal,” Mailbag, June 22. I agree with the distinguished Bud Ovrom that replicas of Lockheed planes (unlike those outside the Empire Center), adorn the exterior of the new Burbank terminal. These should be viewable by all incoming and outgoing passengers.
And yes to “Rosie the Riveter.”
Brava!
Michael Frediani
Burbank