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Hanscom Air Field

Letter to the editor: Henry Francis on “irresponsible” Jet Aviation plan

letterTo the editor:

I attended the February 19 and March 12 public hearings on Jet Aviation’s proposal to expand its Hanscom hanger facilities, which were sponsored by the Lincoln Conservation Commission. These were working business meetings of the commission to which the public were invited.

The commission is concerned with the issue of proposed Jet Aviation construction encroaching on a few acres of Lincoln wetlands. It appears that Jet Aviation will successfully conform to the commission’s requirements, and will therefore be permitted to proceed with their project. However, this is not the issue of importance to most citizens. We the people feel strongly that increasing Hanscom’s total hangar area, in order to house and service more of the dirtiest type of aircraft (as measured by amount of fuel burned and carbon emitted per passenger-mile), is totally irresponsible by any conceivable standard.

There is a striking dichotomy here between the will of the people and the presumed approval of this project, and I am deeply disappointed that the commission  members all were excessively deferential and accommodating to the Jet Aviation representatives and their proposal, in spite of the totally obvious fact that the many citizens in attendance unanimously and angrily oppose the project—there was not one comment from the invited public in support of Jet Aviation.

At what level of environmental pollution (both chemical and acoustic) do we draw the line? The line should be drawn right now—Jet Aviation should not be permitted to expand their Hanscom facilities to accommodate more jets, and we, the people, expect the (our?) Lincoln Conservation Commission to recognize and support this position. This project, and indeed the entire Hanscom expansion juggernaut, should be axed as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Henry Francis
Sunnyside Lane

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters must be about a Lincoln-specific topic. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published. Letters may be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor.

New location for Jet Aviation hearing

runwayThe Lincoln Conservation Commission will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 8:15 p.m. in the Hartwell multipurpose room to hear comments on Jet Aviation’s proposal to expand into Lincoln wetlands buffer zones at Massport’s Hanscom Civil Airport. The meeting was originally slated to be held in the Town Office Building. The proposal was the subject of two recent letters to the editor in the Lincoln Squirrel.

Letters to the editor: Hanscom jet plans

letter

Following are two letters to the editor from Lincoln residents Kati Winchell and Jim Hutchinson concerning a Conservation Commission hearing on a Hanscom Civil Airport application. Letters to the editor must be signed and must be about a Lincoln-specific topic. They may be edited for length, grammar/punctuation, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Send letters via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com.

To the Editor: 

A private luxury jet facility at Hanscom Civil Airport has filed plans with Lincoln Conservation Commission to expand into Lincoln wetlands buffer zones–and in the process expand the airport’s footprint. Lincoln residents should take heed of this latest move by Massport to grow Hanscom Airport.

Jet Aviation’s plans include a new hangar (40,000 square feet, twice the size of the one being replaced), new ramp space (2.1 acres), and a new landside access road. All these features would run within or through Lincoln wetland buffer zones. Jet Aviation maintains that this wetlands area is of “low quality” and can therefore be developed. The fundamental question is: Why should Lincoln set aside its wetlands protection standards to support a development that’s designed to attract and grow one of the single most destructive environmental polluters—private luxury jets?

The facility’s proposed changes are intended to attract and accommodate Gulfstream 650s, the largest private jets made for international travel. Gulfstream 650s are touted as being more fuel-efficient than their smaller cousins. The fact is, however, that a single round trip to China from Hanscom would consume enough fuel to power a Toyota Prius for approximately one million miles. It would generate approximately 400 tons of CO2 equivalent—which is equal to more emissions than a typical family in India generates in an entire lifetime. And that single round trip would carry a maximum of eight passengers.

On Wednesday, February 19 at 8:15 p.m. a public hearing on Jet Aviation’s proposal is being held by the Lincoln Conservation Commission at the Town Offices, Donaldson Room. Lincoln residents will be able to comment on whether the Con Com should approve or deny Jet Aviation’s plans to develop in Lincoln’s wetlands buffer zones. Please come and let your voices be heard.

Sincerely,

Kati Winchell
227 Concord Road

To the Editor:

Lincoln residents should be deeply disturbed by Massport’s latest plan to grow Hanscom Civil Airport, particularly as it comes on the heels of yet another development. Last year, the historic Hangar 24 was demolished and is currently being replaced by a huge 90,000 sq ft private luxury jet facility. This year, Jet Aviation (an existing private jet facility) has plans to grow that would involve incursions into Lincoln wetlands buffer zones.

Though the plans involve Lincoln wetlands, they have potential far-reaching impacts for all four Hanscom-area towns (Bedford, Concord, and Lexington, and Lincoln) because the Jet Aviation proposal would expand the Airport footprint – just as the Hangar 24 development has in Concord. As the Airport footprint expands, so do operation levels, and with them noise and air pollution. This incremental expansion of the Airport doesn’t end here; there are more plans in the wings.

Hanscom Civil Airport is located in the heart of one of America’s highest concentrations of historic and natural resources. It is the only airport in the nation that abuts both a national park (Minute Man Park) and a national wildlife refuge (Great Meadows). Growing the Airport in these unique and sensitive surroundings is inappropriate. Growing it into a Town’s wetlands buffer zone should be out of the question. It would be the height of irony were Lincoln’s wetlands protection standards set aside to facilitate the growth of private luxury jet use, one of the least environmentally-friendly activities In existence.

Next Wednesday, Feb. 19, there will be a hearing on Jet Aviation’s expansion plans at the Lincoln Town Offices at 8:15pm. All Lincoln and Hanscom-area residents are encouraged to attend and voice your concerns about trading protected wetlands buffer zones for private luxury jet use.

Sincerely,

Jim Hutchinson
Stonehedge Road