To the editor: After the Tuesday crash on Whiteman Airport grounds caused by faulty landing gear on a Cessna plane, L.A. County Board Supervisor Lindsey Horvath requested that operations at the airport “cease immediately” and stated that she has “repeatedly called for … corrective actions” on the part of the federal government (“Another crash at L.A. County’s Whiteman Airport is sparking calls for federal reform,” June 16). In 2024, she enacted a freeze on federal grants for the airport, resulting in deferred critical infrastructure improvements.
In addition to being a home to the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s air operations unit, Whiteman Airport is in a strategic location for rapid aerial response during emergencies in foothill communities as well as the San Fernando Valley. The airport also is an economic asset to businesses and local jobs and has provided youth aviation programs since 1971 for students ages 8-17. I hope that both politicians and the public will attend the upcoming June 27 Community Aviation Family Festival at this irreplaceable airport.
Katharine Paull, Kagel Canyon, Calif.
..
To the editor: Airports don’t cause accidents. Freeways don’t cause accidents. Accidents are caused by people, not by an airport or a highway.
The hue and cry by the Board of Supervisors and Pacoima residents is to close Whiteman Airport because it’s dangerous. But we haven’t heard a word about closing the three freeways surrounding Whiteman, which have far more accidents than any airport — including Whiteman.
Trent Sanders, La Cañada Flintridge
