LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Mike Meadows)
PACOIMA — Following several recent plane crashes at Whiteman Airport in Pacoima, Rep. Tony Cárdenas, D-Panorama City, called Monday on Los Angeles County and the Federal Aviation Administration to place a 30-day moratorium on flights at the airport and conduct a safety audit.
The accidents have impacted the northeast area of the San Fernando Valley, represented by the congressman. Most recently, a fatality occurred April 20 when a small aircraft crashed alongside the westbound 210 Freeway in the Sylmar area, leaking a small amount of fuel and damaging some trees. The pilot of the twin-engine Cessna 337, 62-year-old John King of Torrance, was alone in the plane and died at the scene.
It was the second crash in recent months to occur near the airport, prompting questions about its continued operation. In January, a plane landed on train tracks near the airport and was struck by a Metrolink train. Prior to that, in November 2020, a plane crashed in a neighborhood near the runway, killing a Civil Air Patrol pilot.
The propeller and engine of a small plane are seen after a fatal plane crash Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, on the 10600 block of Sutter Avenue near Whiteman Airport in Pacoima. The plane caught fire, killing the pilot, downing power lines and burning at least two vehicles. (Photo by Mike Meadows/Special to the Los Angeles Daily News)
Firefighters are on the scene of a fatal plane crash Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, on the 10600 block of Sutter Avenue near Whiteman Airport in Pacoima. The plane caught fire, killing the pilot, downing power lines and burning at least two vehicles. (Photo by Mike Meadows/Special to the Los Angeles Daily News)
Investigators inspect the wreckage of a plane crash near the runway of Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Thursday, November 12, 2020. The pilot of the Civil Air Patrol airplane died in the fiery crash. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Firefighters are on the scene of a fatal plane crash Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, on the 10600 block of Sutter Avenue near Whiteman Airport in Pacoima. The plane caught fire, killing the pilot, downing power lines and burning at least two vehicles. (Photo by Mike Meadows/Special to the Los Angeles Daily News)
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Mike Meadows)
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Mike Meadows)
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Mike Meadows/Contributing photographer)
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Rick McClure))
LAFD firefighters examine a small plane that went down seconds after taking off from Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Mike Meadows)
Pacoima Beautiful, San Fernando Valley environmental justice organization, calls on Los Angeles County officials to shut down Whiteman Airport. Pacoima Beautiful, Executive Director, Veronica Padilla speaks at the intersection of Osborne Street and San Fernando Road on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Pacoima Beautiful, San Fernando Valley environmental justice organization, calls on Los Angeles County officials to shut down Whiteman Airport. The entrance to Whiteman Airport on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Pacoima Beautiful, San Fernando Valley environmental justice organization, calls on Los Angeles County officials to shut down Whiteman Airport. A banner hangs on the fence at the end of the runway on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Pacoima Beautiful, San Fernando Valley environmental justice organization, calls on Los Angeles County officials to shut down Whiteman Airport. Protesters gather at the intersection of Osborne Street and San Fernando Road on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Pacoima Beautiful, San Fernando Valley environmental justice organization, calls on Los Angeles County officials to shut down Whiteman Airport. A plane takes off from Whiteman Airport on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Pacoima Beautiful is calling for the closure of Whiteman Airport. The group cites environmental concerns, as well as safety worries, especially after a fatal crash by single-engine plane into the residential street. The pilot died, and a 10-year-old boy had to pull his grandma out of a yard where flames from the crash had reached. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Andres Ramirez speaks during the news conference. Pacoima Beautiful, is calling for the closure of Whiteman Airport. The group cites environmental concerns, as well as safety worries, especially after a fatal crash by single-engine plane into the residential street. The pilot died, and a 10-year-old boy had to pull his grandma out of a yard where flames from the crash had reached. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Firefighters attack a blaze caused by a plane crash Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, in a residential neighborhood near Whiteman Airport in Pacoima. A home and multiple vehicles were on fire, and the pilot was killed. (Image from Fox11 video)
An airplane crashed on approach to Whiteman Airport in Pacoima on Nov. 12, 2020, killing the pilot and sole occupant. No one else was reported injured. (Mike Meadows, Contributing Photographer)
Over the last decade, there have been 13 crashes at or near Whiteman, one of five general aviation airports owned by Los Angeles County, according to data from the National Transportation Safety Board. Going back further, a 1990 county-sponsored study cited more than one accident a year annually at Whiteman between 1979 and 1990.
But Cárdenas is asking that more be done now, sending out letters to the FAA pushing for a safety audit and temporarily stop on all non-emergency flights into and out of Whiteman Airport, which facilitates more than 80,000 general aviation takeoffs and landings annually.
“Los Angeles County, the owner and operator of Whiteman Airport, has a responsibility to ensure that the airport meets the necessary airport safety and standards and that all safety practices are followed as required by the Federal Aviation Administration,” he said.
“These incidents have demonstrated that Los Angeles County is failing to achieve the required safety standards and, as a result, trust with the community has been broken,” he continued. “The lack of urgency and attention to ensuring that this airport is running safely is unacceptable. I am requesting a 30-day moratorium on all flights originating from Whiteman Airport, except public safety or medical emergency flights.”
The congressman said he has “profound concern and frustration with the numerous plane crashes” taking off or landing from Whiteman Airport, noting that the most recent crash “was within feet of a high-volume freeway, high-capacity power lines, commercial center and residential homes.”
He wrote in his letters, “As you are aware, incidents at this airport have become a regularity. This most recent plane crash from Whiteman Airport — in addition to the previous crashes in January 2022, November 2020 and September 2018 — have raised serious concerns for the safety of the communities and families surrounding Whiteman Airport as well as the pilots, personnel and staff that have access to or are located at the airport.”
FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the federal agency will respond directly to the congressman’s letter.
Gregor also noted that he has not received any request from Los Angeles County to close the airport, which is required — under the terms of its most recent federal grant in 2021 — to remain open for at least 20 years from that date. Los Angeles County, which owns Whiteman Airport, has received $4.8 million in Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grants for Whiteman since 2006.
