Once again, it was the City of Santa Monica’s concern for safety versus the Federal Aviation Administration’s authority, and the
U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington D.C. came down on the side of the FAA’s authority.

The court refused to review a FAA decision that would not permit the City to ban big jets from the Santa Monica Airport on Friday.

In 2007, the Santa Monica City Council voted for the ban, which “would have prohibited jets with approach speeds of 139 to 191 mph from operating at the airport. The banned aircraft would have included larger and more powerful Gulfstreams, Bombardier Challengers and Cessna Citations,” according to an L.A. Times story.

The Times went on to say, “Although other types of planes that use the Santa Monica airport have worse safety records, city officials said the ban was needed because the faster aircraft could overshoot the 4,973-foot runway and crash into nearby residential neighborhoods with devastating effect.

“In its 19-page decision, the court rebuffed the city’s request for a hearing into the FAA’s decision to halt the ban on the grounds that the restriction violated federal law and contractual agreements with the federal government….(saying it) ‘was not arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion or otherwise not in accordance with the law.’

“FAA officials assert that they have exclusive jurisdiction over airport safety and that the city is legally obligated to make the airport available for public use under reasonable terms and without unjustly discriminating against aircraft types.

“They also cited studies showing that high-speed jets have operated safely at Santa Monica for almost 20 years and that even if such jets ran off the end of the runway, it was unlikely they would crash into neighborhoods. Planes have crashed at the airport and overshot the runway, the studies show, but those incidents have involved other types of aircraft.”

The aviation industry, aircraft owners’ organizations and many pilots
around the country have stood behind the FAA on this issue, as if Santa Monica were to prevail it could radically change general aviation operations.

Officially, it’s a power struggle – the power of the federal government as represented by the FAA versus the power of a city to protect its
residents from harm – toxic pollution spewed by the big planes and
noise pollution as well possible devastating crashes in residential
neighborhoods. Thus far, the feds have won every round.

But there’s another issue. The federal government does not approve the pollution of our waters, air or soil. How, then, can it approve the pollution of our skies?