HomeMy WebLinkAbout02 18 1990 Letter to Council Member McCarthy737 Albatross Terrace
Sebastian, Florida
February 189 1990
Open letter to Councilman McCarthy
Dear Sir:
I had reason to travel Roseland Road and I saw the skid marks and other
evidence of the recent emergency landing that took place 'there. I believe that the
pilot should be commended for landing that aircraft and making the difficult
decisions that were necessary for getting that plane on the ground without injuries.
I have read your comments as published in the Press'Journal. I also read the
item published in the paper concerning the letter read to the council by an
experienced pilot. In your comments, you said that although the two accidents all
involved licensed pilots, that you want the activities of all student pilots
suspended indefinitely. On what basis? What is your justification for such a rash
statement? I do believe it is apparent who should be suspended.
Now, the latest reported comment by you is a request to close runways 13 and
31. These, especially 13, are the most commonly used because of the prevailing
winds. Now you want pilots to land in cross -wind conditions. Are you also willing
to be responsible for incidents caused by this more hazardous approach? What is
your goal or hidden agenda this time? From here on out what happens is on your
shoulders.
In the face of everything I have heard that has.bone on'in this town since the
airport became an issue, it would appear that you ana-your citizens' airport watch
committee would have been a lot smarter to have spent the money on a control tower
instead of giving it.away to a group of lawyers and others who "study situations".
In all probability, neither of these accidents would have happened had you spent
your money for reasonable airport improvements rather than hoping to find a way to
increase real estate values for certain interested "would'be" land grabbers. Had
the anti -airport committee read the documents dating back to when Sebastian was
given the airport, the money could have been saved. Some of you must have known you
couldn't cancel the airport.
Perhaps there should be a quick (and inexpensive) °study" to force the return
of the airport money from those who had wanted to increase their personal' gains by
the previous "study". This money needs to be spent for runway improvements and a
control tower. An experienced controller possibly would have averted the second
insident by directing the aircraft.to a different and closer airfield. Of course,
with a controller, the first one would never have happened.
in many ways, the diversion of the airport fund money for non -airport use was
actually the real cause of the death of Mr. Dimond and the injuries to Mr. Cooper.
There has been enough rhetoric, pages of it in the paper. The town airport
management committee is responsible; therefore, do correct the situation now before
there is any other results of this lack of proper airport management.
Yours for an improved airport,