Evening star., 1951-08-14
0'Nea|| Charges
CAAFavoritism
On BurkeSite
Attorney Says AirIines
Got Preference Under
Secrecy on Airport

The Civil Aeronautics Admin.
istration was accused today o.
giving undue preference" to in.
terests of commercial airlines by
pursuing a policy of secrecy ir
selecting Burke, Va, as the site
of Washington's new airport.
The charge came from Charlie.
F. O'Neall, attorney for the Burke
Airport Relocation Committee, a.
he pressed bitter fight against
development of the Fairfax Coun-
ty project, although it has beer
approved by Secretary of Com
merce Sawyer and indorsed by the
National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission.
Mr. O'Neall asserted that CAA
had sacrificed the long range in
terests of both the public and the
airlines through the policy of
secrecy in choosing the 4,500-acre
site II miles southwest of the Dis
trict.
No Implication of Dishonesty.
Previously, the attorney had de-
clared that it is reasonable to
believe that the cloak of secrecy
was employed to preclude public
scrutiny of the reasons behind the
selection made" He said, how
ever, the statement contained mo
intended implication of dishon-
eSty"
Mr.. O'Neall said the airlines
stand to benefit from the Burke
selection because of its proximity
both to Washington and to Ma
tional Airport. He said the lines
can expect to attract more pas
Sengers than if the airport were
farther away, or if Baltimore S
Friendship airport were used as a
supplement to National.
In conferences yesterday and
today with CAA authorities, COM
mittee members attacked the
stand taken last week by CAA
Administrator C. F. Horne in his
brief for the, Burke choice.
Poor Engineering Charged.
Mr.. O'Neall and his associates
contend that the Government
proposes to build at Burke an
airport which does not meet min
imum recommended engineering
practices of the International Civil
Aviation Organization of the
United Nations. He also contends
that CAA is not abiding by pro-
visions of it's own 1949 publica-
ton, Airport Design" with re-
spect to safety factors.
The Burke attorney said the
selected site would intensity the
already complex traffic patterns
for Washington National Airport
and that planes approaching
Burke would cross danger areas
for Quantico Marine Base and the
Dahlgren Proving Ground unless
modified. Mr.. Horne said it is
CAA's opinion that the conflict
with Dahlgren and Quantico
danger areas can be resolved sat-
isfactorily.
Mr.. Horne said last week that
CAA did not consider as serious
objections to the Burke site which
were listed in an engineering re-
port. He said Mr.. O'Neal had
overlooked "far more serious linn
itations with respect to the other
(possible) sites" He also declared
that the southerly approach at
Burke would be unrestricted.
Criticism Unanswered.
Mr.. O'Neall objected strenu-
ously to the latter statement. He
insisted that the southerly ap-
proach would be unrestricted only
if the Dahlgren and Quantico
danger areas could be modified
Mr.. O'Neall complained that
CAA has never answered criticism
of the length of Burke's proposed
secondary runway. Under the
plans. the main runway will be
10000 feet long and the secondary
runway 1000 feet. Mr.. O'Neall
said the secondary strip should
be $500 to keep in the spirit of
the international agreement. The
pact provides that the secondary
runway generally (should be-
not less than IS per cent and
never less than 10 per cent of the
length" of the main runway.
The Burke attorney also said
the proposed airport will be within
IL airline miles of National Air
port whereas the Airport Design"
adopted by CAA specifies that the
minimum distance should be Is
or 16 miles.
Horne Defends Policy.
He also said that if traffic pat
terms have to be changed because
of the proximity. still more planes
will be flown over congested areas
in Alexandria and Arlington, with
added hazards and increased noise
nuisance.
Mr. Horne defended the policy
OF secrecy in selecting the site on
the basis that it prevented land
speculation. Mr.. ONeall rejected
this with statement that Su-
preme Court rulings preclude
prof1teering by speculation when
the Government need is estab-
lished.
The Relocation Committee
claims that CAA failed to comply
with law by properly consulting
with the Fairfax County Board o1
Supervisors in advance of the Sc.
lection. Mr.. Horne said three
meetings were held with the su.
pervisors. He said on June II the
board was informed that there
were six possible sites within tht
county and that the suitability Of
each was discussed in detail. HI
4.