Palmdale Wants Its Airport Back

Ontario, Calif., has spent the past few years trying to wrest the local airport from the city of Los Angeles, and now Palmdale wants control of its airport too.

Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford wants to grow the Palmdale Regional Airport by adding commercial flights, according to the Redland Daily Facts newspaper.

The airport currently has no passenger service. Los Angeles World Airports has managed Palmdale's airport since 1967.

If the city council votes in favor of Ledford's proposal to take control of a terminal building, parking lot and taxiway, the city would next have to approach the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners and Los Angeles City Council.

LAWA Spokesman Nancy Castles told the local newspaper that LAWA is prepared to transfer operations, management and control of the regional airport to Palmdale.

A final decision still has not been made by LAWA concerning operations at Ontario International Airport. LAWA owns 17,000 acres of airport land in Palmdale and was considering building an airport on the site to relieve congestion at LAX before the economic downturn derailed those plans.

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Transportation industry California
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