Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-07-14
President Hears
Plea for Use Of
Friendship Field
Maryland Group
Urges Designation
As D. 6. Alternate

President Eisenhower has
heard the Maryland argument
in behalf of Friendship National
Airport as the alternate air ter.
minal flor Washington. but has
given no inkling Of his reac-
ton to the plea.
Through its two Senators and
all seven members of the House,
Maryland made its big pitch for
Friendship yesterday afternoon.
The congressional delegation
presented the argument at q
White House conference.
Democratic Representative Fall
Ion of Baltimore said Gen. Eisen-
hover received the delegation
favorably with a statement that
he was glad to hear all the rea-
sons, that could be advanced in
the airport controversy, but Mr..
Fallon and Senator Beall added
that Gen. Eisenhower gave them
no assurances of his own views.
The Maryland delegation is
urging the selection of Friend
ship-which is situated not far
from Baltimore-in preference
to Andrews Air Force Base.
Economies Cited.
A statement prepared for the
President by Mr.. Fallon and
adopted by his congressional COL
leagues, emphasized economy
as an argument for Friendship
as the logical field to take some
Of the traffic from crowded Ma
tional Airport.
The statement also stressed
public safety factors and advo-
Gated the use of helicopters for
quick transfer of air passengers
between Friendship and points
IN Washington and Baltimore.
The Fallon statement raised
the question: why should the
taxpayers be imposed upon for
a $25 million expenditure to
convert Andrews as a secondary
field for Washington, when we
have available one of the most
modern up-to-date airports in
the world at Friendship, specifi-
cally built for this purpose, with
no additional cost to the tax
payerS?"
The statement commended that
Andrews, as a field for CONNER
cial flights, would be operating
in direct competition with
Friendship.
Time Element Overstressed.
The Maryland delegation said
too much emphasis had been
placed on the fact that Friend
ship is farther from Washing
ton than Andrews. They de-
clared:
1.-THE savings of a few min
utes' travel time has been al.
most excessively embroidered by
the proponents of Andrews, and
Is the only argument advanced
to date for its civilian use.
Until the new Baltimore
Washington EXpresSway is COM
pleted and accurate comparisons
of travel time can honestly be
made, let's not eliminate Friend
ship on this score" They
claimed that cars will be running
over the new highway before
Congress can get an appropria.
ton through for Andrews.
With the expressway, the dele
cation said. the time differential
will be negligible.
The President also was told
that the treatment of Friendship
Airport, to date, had been
shameful" The statement said
that 44,400 Baltimoreans an
nually ride trains, or drive-with
luggage-to and from National
Airport, because Of poor fight
connections at Friendship.
The Marylanders commended
that helicopter service from
Friendship to Washington and
Baltimore will solve the problem
of getting passengers to and
from downtown points in a mat
ter of a few minutes. They cited
the recently-inaugurated hell
copter service at New York air.
ports as evidence of practical
hi1ifu