Meigs Airport Chicago Closed without notification to pilots.

jenat-lai · Post by **jenat-lai** » 2003-04-01 06:39am

From EAA:

March 31, 2003 - Under cover of darkness in the early morning hours
Monday, Chicago's lakefront airport Meigs Field was closed after city
construction crews carved a series of large, X-shaped portions of
concrete out of the runway.

Image of destroyed runway this morning:
http://www.eaa.org/communications/eaane ... uction.jpg

After the airport closed operations at 11 p.m. Sunday, with no notice to
the tower and only short notice to the airport-based fire department, a
police-escorted caravan of heavy equipment made its way onto 18-36 and
carved large X's into the runway. By dawn the trucks and backhoes were
gone. "The nature of the actions taken by the city under the cover of
darkness indicates that there was not public support for this action,"
EAA President Tom Poberezny said. "Throughout the years, Meigs Field has
proven its value, both from an economic standpoint and as well as from a
social standpoint. Thousands of kids have enjoyed EAA Young Eagles
flights there. Numerous organizations and hundreds of volunteers have
worked diligently on behalf of the airport. We will continue to work
with the Friends of Meigs Field and others in trying to save the
airport. All options will be quickly investigated"

"The city did this with a vengeance," Rachel Goodstein, president of the Friends of Meigs Field, said. "People we've talked to are saying this a homeland security action. If this (Meigs) was a national security issue, they could block the runway with trucks. We all know this is not a national security issue." This appalling development, which stranded a reported 16 aircraft, comes after the city had made assurances that the airport would remain open. All that appears with regard to an FAA Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) is the following local announcement: Chicago IL (Merrill C Meigs) [CGX]: March NOTAM #6 Airport closed will be effective March 31st, 2003 at 06:00 AM CST (0303311200).

EAA's Legal Advisory Counsel is exploring legal options, and EAA will provide updated information throughout the day as it becomes available.

http://www.aopa.org/images/whatsnew/new ... 157x_3.jpg

Picture of a number of the aircraft now stranded at Meigs Airfield. Reported to be 16 in total.

-------------------------------------------------------

Also heard From a Newsgroup I frequent:

Oh, it's no damn joke, that's for sure. My friends Merlin III is one of the 16
a/c being held 'hostage...' Chuck and his wife had flown into Meigs for the
weekend and now their $2.7 million, twin turbo is sitting there, with no way to
leave. Chuck is seething mad, along with quite a few other of his wealthy
friends. It was a stupid move on Daly the Dictator's part to totally alienate
more than a few of the richest folks in the Chicagoland area.

At this point, they are trying to obtain permission from the FAA to allow a
taxiway T/O, since moving the Merlin III on a lowboy will be a very labor
intensive, and expensive process. Of course, Mayor Daly has stated publicly
that the city will reimburse the a/c's owners for the cost of relocation, and we
ALL know how trustworthy Richard Daly is... NOT!

The man lied through his teeth just a few days ago when he also stated publicly
that he would NOT use the excuse of Homeland Security to force a closure of
Meigs, only to order the heavy equipment in to tear up the runway in the dead of
night, like the sneaky, gangster type he is.

jenat-lai · Post by **jenat-lai** » 2003-04-01 06:55am

Doh, wrong forum... meh, fits here fine enough I guess...

Post by **NecronLord** » 2003-04-01 06:57am

Where do you want it?

jenat-lai · Post by **jenat-lai** » 2003-04-01 07:15am

I was going to put it in off topic, but since it is an act worthy of a hall of shame... here is good enough for me.

Post by **NecronLord** » 2003-04-01 07:18am

Nope. To off topic it goes. *waves hand* The HoS is only for borad or subject related infamy.

EmperorMing · Post by **EmperorMing** » 2003-04-01 08:00am

That is total BS to do something like this with no warning...

Ender · Post by **Ender** » 2003-04-01 10:17am

Pulling it like that is stupid. But as a chicago native, I'm glad to see the thing gone.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-01 10:22am

Can you say 'April Fools?'

Yogi · Post by **Yogi** » 2003-04-01 10:26am

http://www.suntimes.com/output/commenta ... its01.html

This is NOT an April Fool's Joke.

Wicked Pilot · Post by **Wicked Pilot** » 2003-04-01 01:41pm

It looks pretty real to me. FAA NOTAMS seem to confirm the closing.

If this is a joke, then they are doing a damn fine job.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-01 02:06pm

wow, you are right...

That is a closed runway, for sure.

Sokar · Post by **Sokar** » 2003-04-01 02:35pm

Well , I'll be damned.....
I always knew Daly was't subtle, but this brings it to entirely new levels. Guess his patience finally ran out, hes wanted the Meigs Field land for redevelopement for almost ten years now, however some how I doubt this was the best way to go about doing it......

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2003-04-01 02:37pm

Sokar wrote:Well , I'll be damned.....
I always knew Daly was't subtle, but this brings it to entirely new levels. Guess his patience finally ran out, hes wanted the Meigs Field land for redevelopement for almost ten years now, however some how I doubt this was the best way to go about doing it......

Daley is a fucking ass like his fatass dad was. He needs to be removed
from office

Lord_Xerxes · Post by **Lord_Xerxes** » 2003-04-01 02:46pm

Isn't this illegal somehow?

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-01 02:51pm

Lord_Xerxes wrote:Isn't this illegal somehow?

Nope. It is a municipal airport for them to do as they please.

Lord_Xerxes · Post by **Lord_Xerxes** » 2003-04-01 02:57pm

Nathan F wrote:
Lord_Xerxes wrote:Isn't this illegal somehow?
Nope. It is a municipal airport for them to do as they please.

Wow. That really fucking blows for them.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2003-04-01 03:31pm

From Freerepublic.com:

When Daley I died, Daley II was otherwise occupied in public office and wasn't ready to take over yet. It was a wild scene, since it was quickly found that there was no clear line of succession defined in Chicago law. Eventually the Aldermen agreed upon an "Intermim Mayor" (one of their own). Then, at the next regular election, the maverick Jane Byrne ran against the machine's candidate. The machine made a huge mistake, though. It snowed like hell the day before election day, but only the politically favored areas got dug out by the city. Mass transit stops in the white areas somehow got cleared out right away, but mass transit stops in minority areas didn't. Many stories of people walking to the polls intending to vote machine, slipping and falling, and getting up and voting for Jane.

Jane was interesting, and I personally thought she provided great entertainment. There was actual debate in the City Council (not that any of them were comfortable with that). But, she didn't do a great job running the city. At the next election, she faced two challengers; Harold Washington and Daley II. Daley II and Jane split the white vote and lost (Daley I lost one of his early attempts for office as well) ran against her, he won. He was a) black, and b) reasonably articulate. He's have been re-elected, but towards the end of his term, he died of a heart attack. I remember watching Dr. Stern, the Coroner of Cook County, give a press conference about his autopsy findings. He let people know, in crude detail, that Harold's body was shot through with fat everywhere, and that he basically ate himself to death.

Anyway, at the subsequent election, Daley II ran. This time he had all his ducks in a row, beat the black candidate, and has been Mayor ever since. He'll be Mayor for life, just like his dad, because his father taught him well the lesson that Mike Royko well documented that he himself had learned: don't touch the money. Let your friends feed at the trough. Then, when the feds show up, they follow the money. The people who take money get burned, but if you stay single-minded in your pursuit of power over money, you'll stay clean.

Sokar · Post by **Sokar** » 2003-04-01 05:42pm

Beauty of a post there Shep, Chicago politics are really out of this world, its actually fun to watch it work.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-01 06:35pm

Lord_Xerxes wrote:
Nathan F wrote:
Lord_Xerxes wrote:Isn't this illegal somehow?
Nope. It is a municipal airport for them to do as they please.
Wow. That really fucking blows for them.

As long as they tell the FAA and give NOTAMS when it happens, and make proper markings showing a closed airfield (X's across the runway, if you will look when you are at an airshow, there are yellow X's at the ends of the runway)

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-04-01 06:58pm

Sokar wrote:Beauty of a post there Shep, Chicago politics are really out of this world, its actually fun to watch it work.

I lived in Evanston for a few months, yeah, Chicago politics are truly screwed up.

BrYaN19kc · Post by **BrYaN19kc** » 2003-04-01 07:19pm

I can't believe they did that! I've visited Meigs Field several times while in Chicago and always loved watching the planes take off and land. Meigs Field has also been in several classic movies.

It's a shame to see it go. From what I have read, it doesn't sound like the Mayor of Chicago was too ethical in the way that he closed the air field either.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-01 07:22pm

BrYaN19kc wrote:I can't believe they did that! I've visited Meigs Field several times while in Chicago and always loved watching the planes take off and land. Meigs Field has also been in several classic movies.

It's a shame to see it go. From what I have read, it doesn't sound like the Mayor of Chicago was too ethical in the way that he closed the air field either.

This was also the 'featured' airfield in all the MS Flight Simulators (yes, all, even back to Flight Sim 3 and 4). Sad to see it go.

BrYaN19kc · Post by **BrYaN19kc** » 2003-04-01 07:30pm

Nathan F wrote:
BrYaN19kc wrote:I can't believe they did that! I've visited Meigs Field several times while in Chicago and always loved watching the planes take off and land. Meigs Field has also been in several classic movies.

It's a shame to see it go. From what I have read, it doesn't sound like the Mayor of Chicago was too ethical in the way that he closed the air field either.
This was also the 'featured' airfield in all the MS Flight Simulators (yes, all, even back to Flight Sim 3 and 4). Sad to see it go.

I didn't think about that, and I even have the latest release of Flight Simulator. It will be interesting to see what airport they feature in the next release. The World Trade Center is gone from the software and now Meigs Field.

jenat-lai · Post by **jenat-lai** » 2003-04-01 07:36pm

The 16 aircraft caught on the ground at Meigs Field when Mayor Richard Daley ordered the runway of the lakefront airport torn up may be stuck there a while as city and federal aviation authorities determine if planes can safely take off from a taxiway, a federal official said today.

Surveyors could be seen at the field this afternoon, presumably taking measurements to see if the aircraft could safely depart. An FAA spokeswoman said the surveyors were working for the city.

The planes were caught when Chicago, with no advance warning to the public, sent in heavy construction equipment early Monday morning to dig Xs across the main runway, closing the 55-year-old field to traffic.

Before the Federal Aviation Administration can even look at allowing aircraft to take off from Meigs, the city must request an airspace study, said Elizabeth Isham Cory, spokeswoman for the FAA's Great Lakes Central Region office. As of 4 p.m., the FAA still had not received such a request from the city, she said.

Earlier today, in a written response to Tribune inquiries, Cory said that once the request was received, "we would turn it around as quickly as possible — hours to a day, possibly more. Time is of the essence, but so is a safe review."

Among the questions the FAA would ask:
Was the taxiway damaged by the city's construction equipment?
Is the taxiway wide, long and level enough to allow a plane to safely depart?
Where would a plane go if it loses engine power on take-off?

There also are possible insurance issues for aircraft owners and the city, Cory said.

"This is a process that several different entities are examining today," Cory wrote. "Bottom line: it's the city's issue. They need to decide what to do with these planes.

"Our issue is safety. If removal involves reentry of the airspace, then we have to make sure it is a safe reentry for all involved, and those nearby as well."

If departure by air proves to be impossible, aircraft would have to be disassembled and trucked away. Daley, who has said he ordered Meigs closed for public safety reasons, has promised the city would reimburse aircraft owners the costs of removing their planes from the air field.

jenat-lai · Post by **jenat-lai** » 2003-04-01 08:01pm

A NOTAM announcing the airport was closed was issued *after* the runway was bulldozed.