Quantcast
MobileRJ | RSS TwitterTwitter FacebookFacebook E-mail Alerts
Home manage Las Vegas Review-Journal
  Jobs Cars Homes Shopping Travel Weddings Golf Best of Las Vegas Photo   Search:

RECENT EDITIONS
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

sponsored by
News
Sep. 13, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Grant to study NLV airport safety

Two planes crashed into homes in August

By KEITH ROGERS
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Nevada Sens. Harry Reid and John Ensign secured a $100,000 grant Friday from the Federal Aviation Administration for Clark County to conduct a safety study in the wake of two recent airplane crashes into homes near the North Las Vegas Airport.

"We've all seen the recent tragedies at North Las Vegas Airport, and they are deeply troubling," Reid, D-Nev., said in a joint statement with Ensign, R-Nev., announcing the grant.

Most Popular Stories
  • Three suspects arrested in shooting death of police officer
  • Three suspects arrested in shooting death of police officer
  • FATAL SHOOTING: Police again mourn comrade
  • NORM: Biden finds rank has its privileges
  • NORM: Walton: Coach deserved a punch
  • Two of three suspects in slaying of officer could face death penalty
  • DEADLY HOME INVASION: Police suspect link to family
  • Station Casinos posts $455 million third-quarter loss
  • NORM: 'Girls Gone Wild' creator feels heat
  • Las Vegas police shoot at man fleeing after traffic stop
  • Las Vegas police shoot at man fleeing after traffic stop
  • UNLV sacks football coach Sanford




    • "We're going to provide the resources for the county and airport officials to work together with pilots to ensure the highest safety standards are met," Reid said. "Both the users of the airport and the people living in neighborhoods near the airport must be protected from future problems."

    On Aug. 22, an experimental aircraft with only five flight hours took off from North Las Vegas Airport and crashed into the home of Jack and Lucy Costa near Lake Mead Boulevard and Simmons Street. The pilot, Mack Murphree, 76, of Dayton, was killed along with the Costas in the fiery crash.

    Six days later, a twin-engine Piper Navajo Chieftain experienced engine trouble seven minutes after taking off from the airport. The pilot tried to return but the plane hit a tree, power lines, a two-story house on North Jones Boulevard and an unoccupied car in the driveway of the house, which was 1.2 miles west of the runway he was trying to reach.

    The pilot, William J. Leahy Jr., 38, of Redwood City, Calif., was killed. Four people in the house escaped without injury and one person had minor injuries.

    Ensign said those crashes "highlight the importance of safety at our airports."

    "Safety in the airline industry is of utmost importance, and this grant will help to maintain rigorous safety requirements necessary to ensure that travelers reach their destinations," he said.

    North Las Vegas Airport is considered a reliever airport used primarily for general aviation in a valley that generates air traffic from McCarran International Airport, Nellis Air Force Base, Henderson Executive Airport and Boulder City Municipal Airport on the east side of Las Vegas Valley.

    The grant will provide money for a safety management system study at North Las Vegas Airport involving pilots to help determine compliance with international standards and identify issues of concern.

    Newsvine Digg Fark Technorati reddit StumbleUpon del.icio.us Slashdot Propeller Mixx Furl Twitter MySpace Facebook Google Bookmarks Yahoo! Bookmarks Windows Live Favorites Ask MyStuff myAOL Favorites

    Leave Your Comment 6 Reader Comments
    Terms & Conditions
    The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsiblity of the authors. The reviewjournal.com does not review comments before publication nor guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by the comment policy. If you see a comment that violates the policy, please notify the web editor.

    Some comments may not display immediately due to an automatic filter. These comments will be reviewed within 48 hours. Please do not submit a comment more than once.
    Current Word Count:

    Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background.

    Geezelouise wrote on September 13, 2008 10:19 AM: Most of us who purchased our homes near the airport did so when small aircraft still flew out of McCarran airport.

    The air traffic in/out of NLV airport was scant.

    That is no longer the case.

    These residents aren't complaining about the noise. They are questioning the safety.

    They have every right to question it considering there are more accidents at this airport than any other.

    It isn't about who moved where when, it is about planes falling out of the sky with regularity.


    Tim wrote on September 13, 2008 09:18 AM: glad we have all this extra money for grants.this grant is just the tip of the iceberg,just look in the newspaper,the gov.is giving away money hand over foot.and they say our state is broke.what a joke.


    I will complete the study for free wrote on September 13, 2008 09:13 AM: Here are the results. During the building boom that land was cheap (because it was so close to the airport). So, the council members that received hefty campaign contributions from the builders along with the Mayor who was a former appraiser and buds with the developers approved all the building out there.

    Here is a little more history that dates back a little farther. Most of the land out there was in the county at one time. Mary Kincaid Chauncey (county commissioner now in prison)was a north town council woman that fought furiously to have the land in that area annexed into north town so the builders could build. If I remember correctly, the county still had restictions on the land at that time that would hinder the developers. Many land owners tried to stop the annexation but Kinkaid Chauncey had a mission. She then moved to the County Commission. The rest is history.


    PETO wrote on September 13, 2008 09:07 AM: RIGHT ON WILLIAM!!!
    YOU BUY A HOUSE BY THE AIRPORT THAT WAS THERE LONG BEFORE YOU DUMB DUMB DUMB...STOP CRYING AND MOVE.


    Justice wrote on September 13, 2008 08:03 AM: This is just the first 100K for the report. Then there will be another 100K to study the report, then another 100K to study the study of the report and so on. Eventually nothing will happen and some people will make money at our expense.


    William wrote on September 13, 2008 06:25 AM: What a waste of our tax money. The study, i.e. money going into someone's pocket, will determine what we already know. The airport was there first and then they built houses right next to it. Duhhhhh!!!!!