Civilian Airport at El Toro Base

It is very disheartening to continually read about the shortsighted, Band-Aid solutions some of our political leaders conjure up for us. The front page article (Jan. 12) about the newly approved congressional study of combining civilian and military air traffic at El Toro Marine Corps Air Station is a perfect case in point.

We who live in Orange County have very serious traffic, safety and environmental problems, and we seem to take great delight in making them worse. I refer to the recently approved expansion of John Wayne Airport. We will choke on our congestion in the 21st Century, and our glowing economy will suffer greatly for it. The suggestion to open El Toro to civilian air traffic will, again, only worsen the problems in the long run.

I suggest that what needs to be studied is the feasibility of a super regional airport in conjunction with San Diego, which is rapidly outgrowing its airport. Lindbergh Field is, in fact, already a marginal airport from a safety standpoint.

The super regional airport, similar to but probably larger than Dallas-Fort Worth, would be connected to the major urban centers with high-speed lightweight trains. John Wayne air traffic should be reduced, not increased, and the Marine Corps should be thinking about the eventual phase-out of operations at El Toro.

Sure, there are a lot of big problems to overcome, and the initial cost will appear to be high, but if Orange and San Diego counties are to continue to grow, prosper and be great places to live, imaginative and courageous steps will have to be taken.

A. O. BIRKELBACH

San Clemente