Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-07-14
Case Asks WaY
ToCut Time 10
FriiendshiipFi
Prentiss Gets Letter:
Maryland Delegation
Sees Eisenhower

Chairman Case of the Senate
District Committee today asked
Commissioner Prentiss
for suggestions on cutting down
travel time between Washington
and Friendship International
Airport near Baltimore.
In a letter to Gen. Prentiss the
Senator asked for specific infor-
nation on travel time between
the District and Friendship, An
drews Air Force Base, Washing.
ton National Airport and Burke,
Va, site of a proposed alternate
field for the Nations Capital.
Senator Case has been giving
some of his support to the Mary
land delegation, favoring use Of
Friendship over Andrews or con-
Struction of the Burke field as
alternate airports.
Eisenhower Hears Plea.
Meanwhile President Eisen-
hover has heard the Maryland
argument in behalf of Friend
ship National Airport as the al
ternate air terminal for WASH
ington, but has given no inkling
of his reaction 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 a
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 BeaI added
that Gen. Eisenhower gave them
no assurances of his own views.
Economy Argument Advanced.
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?"
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.
The President also was told
that the treatment of Friendship
Airport, to date, had been
Shameful" The statement said
that 44,4O0 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 few minutes. They cited
the recently-inaugurated hell
copter service at New York air.
ports as evidence of practical
bility.