By Andy Byrnes Santa Monica
Shame on you! I have been appalled at the spate of articles and letters attempting to denigrate the historic Santa Monica Airport. For example, your Daily Press staff writer who recently called the maybe 100 in all — representing 0.125 percent of our population — “a sea of protesters,” when a “puddle of dissidents” would have been more apt.
The airport is one of the oldest in the country and was operation in 1917 — 90 years ago. I am an 84-year-old WWII vet, so I remember that President Roosevelt in early 1942 called on the U.S. manufacturers to build 60,000 airplanes over the next year — a number that many thought was impossible. He appointed Donald Douglas to lead the effort.
Since Douglas was building airplanes at the Santa Monica airport, it became the meeting place for the team of executives from the aircraft, automobile and most of all manufacturing in the U.S. to meet and plan this amazing feat. They did meet FDR’s goals.
What kind of persons would go to the effort of buying a home near the airport, and then by exaggerating to the point of lying about the noise and pollution hazards of the area, attempt to have it closed?
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 4, 2007. Read the original PDF.