anyone heard of "Quantas Airways" ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SFGate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2004/10/20/s= tate2051EDT0289.DTL --------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday, October 20, 2004 (AP) City Council approves LA airport modernization plan (10-20) 17:51 PDT LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A massive overhaul plan that could cost up to $11 billion to make the world's fifth-busiest airport safer and more modern was approved Wednesday by the City Council. Council members voted 12-3 for the Los Angeles International Airport expansion, which has already cost $130 million to develop and would be implemented in two stages. In the first phase, which would cost $3 billion, a runway would be moved and the airport would add more gates to the international terminal. The airport would also build a consolidated rental car center, an elevated people mover, transit hub, and an employee parking lot. Because of a compromise reached between Mayor James Hahn and City Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski and others, the more expensive and controversial elements of the overhaul would begin only after further study. That phase, to cost about $8 billion, includes construction of a central passenger check-in facility and demolition of three terminals. Altogether, the remodeling would be the largest in the airport's 75-year history. The council must vote again in December because the little-known county Airport Land Use Commission ruled that the proposal violated the airport land use plan. Federal officials, including the Federal Aviation Administration, also must approve the plan before any construction could begin. Opposing the plan were two City Council members who are running for mayo= r, Antonio Villaraigosa and Bernard Parks, and one member who backs Villaraigosa, Jack Weiss. Weiss said he doesn't believe the second phase would make the airport safer as intended, and would invite legal challenges. Airlines had praised the so-called "consensus plan," saying it was needed to accommodate a larger plane, the 555-seat Airbus A380, which is expected to begin landing in Los Angeles in two years. "We want to continue our growth in Los Angeles," Quantas Airways general manager Rob Sharp told the council at a Tuesday hearing. "We want to be the first carrier to bring in the A380. To do this we need this consensus plan. Any substantial delays could mean our operations move to other cities." After the vote, El Segundo Mayor Mike Gordon said he was preparing a lawsuit challenging the plan. Gordon and others in the city south of LAX believe the expansion would increase noise and traffic. Opponents said they had collected 17,000 signatures from nearby residents who believe the overhaul is a bad idea. They want to limit the growing number of annual passengers at LAX and spread future growth in travelers and cargo to other airports in the region. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2004 AP