The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1946-02-27
A Thought For Today
An Airport and Our Future

We cannot at this time give unqualified endorsement
to about opposition proposed airport for the Waterbury
area We will however qualify support of any such pro-
posed municipal airport until ali factors concerned with its
feasibility practcaby have been upurned and weighed
for value We think it much too early to attempt to put
full halt any plans for the study of such program
To contend at this early date that Waterbury offers
little to the potenaes of aviation wise versa is to our
minds indulgence in type of civic isolaonsm which may
subsequently penalize municipalities future Aviation
is of the stage of speculation and mmatury and
has emerged since the beginning of the into giant in
the field of transportation To attempt to cloak ourselves
the wraps of nsuarty in this question may be ikened
to striving to wrap about avoid hurricane
To be ignorant of progress is excusabe but to deliberately
try to avoid it is unjustiable.
The merits of of the arguments of the opponents
10 the proposal worthy They contend that Waterbury
alone could not sufficiently support municipal airport
While their reasonngs sound yet they speculative
not knowing what the future will bring BY the same
token the plans of the proponents in the speculative
realm: yet believe they hold merit because they
advance to meet the challenge of progress offered by
aviation They urge only that the city plan for eventual
ity by plotting its should it day find
necessary for sake of existence follow that course
Too many of continue look upon aviation a nov
city, or luxury fight into fancy which has been given
some measure of reality but will never quite fit into
everyday existence normal natural phase of that exist
Most of still into the sky at the drone OF
plane Yet it that single act of looking upward into the
path of fight that the permanent future OF
aviation 1t not curiosity that leads US to look up
ward the magnetic pull of progress and the thrill to be
found the daring of which has permitted him to fur
Their challenge time and distance 1t is the knowledge that
by such ingenuity tomorrows time will not be stale repet-
tion of todays
Let us accept final conclusion for the sake of argu-
ment the of local industriass that air
freight transportation is feasible for their companies
of the heavy aspects of the materials in These
know their businesses and certainly have given consd
GRAFTON the possibility of air transportation If the lat
ter has been found wanting in this aspect is only safe TO
assume that this was so determined until these indus
trasts had thoroughly searched the facts But what
of other businesses? What of the possibility of aviation
opening new and fresh vstae of business for Waterbury?
What of fresh fruits tropical and native which already
being transported to all points of America by plane and are
offering new means OF enterprise What of the same pos
sbies for flowers for foodstuf medicines general mer
chandse of all kinds small parts for and of other manutac
turers, etc?
Next but by no means secondary, should be con-
sderaton of air travel by people and the everdeveopng
propensity toward this mode of travel transportation Its
subsequent full development something not yet cacuabe
in light of the constantly huctuatng progressOns in avia
ton except the by sound statistical reasonngs
that it will be tremendous The increased demands for air
travel have been and still far out of proportion TO the
ability of aviation to handle them. Avatons problem at
this time is to keep with the demand by of fac
ties and equipment Yet are we to ignore these facts and
turn back when persists proddng our
shoulder-bades?
Let us be more factual It has been argued that Wa
terbury located enough already established main
line airpOrs at Hartford and Bridgeport 1t is further
soned therefore that airport in the local would be
superhuous Yet when the railroads had finished building
their main routes they did not stop here they began to
build secondary lines and to double track their main lines
The arlnes of today undertaking similar expansion
Their routes crisscrOss the country and make possible to
travel great distances with speed comfort economy and
safety Were the arguments against railway second
airy lines heard in the early days of the railroads. History
answers Wasn't the opposition to the potentia
ties OF rail travel and transportation heard? History again
says yes.
This is an era Of speed and Of progress in science which
must be ready to accept with the thundercap sudden
Of the last that the first atomic
bomb in world history had destroyed of Hiroshima
IN design to meet the demands of this cannot
stop too long to the speculative merits of the de-
mands. We must plan for well against and when the
reality Of these demands square before be ready to
choose course, and subsequently destiny That is
Ill it, that the City Plan Commission asking
at this time To plan, to prepare and be ready. Let
not take entive sides at this time in opposition to each
other The city authorities and many citizens urge the
planning for airport; the legislative committee Of the
Council Of Community Clubs and of the industrias
opposed Let each group prepare its without
directly obstructng the other Our cys future may be