Editorial: For the Birds

A federal official offers common sense on the Navy's proposed landing field near a wildlife refuge: Birds and planes don't mix

So far, the U.S. Navy's campaign to build a so-called outlying landing field on a tract straddling the Washington-Beaufort county line has been based on repetition. Say it enough times that it would be safe to build a field where pilots could practice carrier landings in Super Hornet fighter jets just five miles from the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, and maybe it will be believed.But that contention remains a stretch. Thousands of large migratory birds winter in and around the refuge. Among other serious concerns, there's the possibility of a goose or swan being sucked into a jet engine, or smashing into a windshield or wing. It's not rocket science that such collisions can destroy an aircraft and put ...

Outlying Landing Field

News and Observer, Dwane Powell

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