CAA: GA News, "Committee pursues reopening of Georgia's St. Marys Airport"

["Stephen Irwin" <stepheni@xxxxxxxxx>]

Wednesday, October 17, 2001 

Committee pursues reopening of St. Marys Airport
Navy wants permanent ban to protect Kings Bay 
By Gordon Jackson 
The Florida Times-Union


ST. MARYS -- A local committee appointed by Gov. Roy Barnes is in
Washington today to discuss whether the St. Marys Airport will ever
reopen.

But if the Navy has its way, the Federal Aviation Administration will
grant the Navy's request for a permanent ban on aircraft flying below
5,000 feet within a five-mile radius of Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base.
If the request is granted, the airport, located a mile from the base,
will close permanently.

The eight-member committee met Monday with Capt. Frank Stagl, chief of
staff for Submarine Group 10, to discuss the airport, which has been
closed since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Stagl didn't offer much
hope that the Navy would change its stance opposing reopening the
airport.

"We have to have space to have reaction time [to an attack]," Stagl
said.

New security measures are also under way to protect Kings Bay, plus a
nuclear warhead construction facility in Texas and the nation's second
Trident submarine base in Bangor, Wash., Stagl said. The measures
involve an air defense system, which Stagl said he couldn't give
specific details about because of national security. 

"Today there isn't a way [to stop all threats from the air]," Stagl
said.

However, it is the Navy's request for a permanent ban on airspace near
the base that has some committee members concerned. They questioned the
purpose of a flight restriction if the base is unable to stop an
attacker from the air.

"All I have to do is be convinced they [the Navy] can protect a
five-mile radius," St. Marys Mayor Jerry Brandon said. "Right now, you
can't stop a threat from Fernandina."

Stagl said base security needed the extra time to react to a threat. The
"raw, explosive power of a rocket motor" used to fuel the nuclear
Trident missiles could create "an event we can't live with," if a
terrorist crashed an aircraft into a submarine or the facility where the
missiles are assembled on base, he said.

The first step to increase security is a request by the Navy for the FAA
to impose a permanent ban on aircraft flying near the three facilities,
Stagl said.

The restriction has shut down the St. Marys Airport and grounded the
nine remaining planes parked in the hangars and on the runways. The
temporary restriction will be lifted Saturday for four hours to allow
owners to move their aircraft to another location, after St. Marys
police search the planes.

Even after all planes are gone from the airport, the concern remains
that a pilot unaware of the temporary restriction could accidentally fly
into the restricted airspace, putting the base, the aircraft and the
pilot at risk, Stagl said. By declaring the area permanently restricted
airspace, it will appear on charts used by private and commercial
pilots.

But St. Marys City Manager Mike Mahaney questioned why the city airport
is a threat when a private jet with a top speed of 500 mph could fly
into the restricted zone and crash into the base, presumably before
security forces could react.

Stagl said security experts assured him the Navy could stop a high-speed
jet from crashing into the base -- even with little reaction time.

"I talked to the experts [who studied base security after the Sept. 11
attacks]," Stagl said. "I believe them."

Mahaney then asked why a five-mile protection zone is needed if the Navy
can react to such a threat.

"Hopefully, we've been tracking that aircraft an hour," Stagl said.

Most airborne threats would be identified from air tracking stations in
Savannah and Jacksonville, Stagl said. Military jets are also patrolling
the skies near key military instillations nationwide.

Exceptions to the flight restrictions would be helicopters carrying
emergency medical, search and rescue or law enforcement personnel, Stagl
said.

Committee members also asked why the base didn't perceive the airport as
a security risk when studies exploring the issue were conducted in the
mid-1980s.

"Back in the early '80s, we were concerned about a crash," Stagl said.
"We looked at the probabilities and determined the risk was so small, it
was unlikely it could happen. I didn't know the next weapon of mass
destruction was going to be an airliner." 

Although Navy officials will not likely reverse their position on a
permanent airspace ban surrounding the base, Stagl said a possibility
exists the federal government will help pay the cost to build a new
airport in the county outside the restricted zone.

Rear Adm. Gerald Talbot, commanding officer of Submarine Group 10, has
promised to do whatever he can to convince federal officials to help pay
for a new airport, Stagl said.

Committee members planned to meet today with U.S. Sens. Max Cleland and
Zell Miller, U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston, officials from the FAA and Navy
officials who ultimately will decide whether to lift the flight
restrictions or recommend funding to build a new airport, estimated to
cost $30 million. State Rep. Charlie Smith, who is heading the committee
appointed by Barnes, said the governor has pledged the "full resources
of the state" for permitting and construction if federal officials offer
to build a new airport.

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