Boston Globe -- West section
August 28, 2003

FedEx cools jets on Hanscom flight plan

By Davis Bushnell, Globe Correspondent

Federal Express Corp. is in a holding pattern over Bedford's Hanscom Field.

The Hanscom Field Advisory Commission had been planning for a huge gathering at its Sept. 16 meeting, featuring a major presentation by FedEx on scheduling 10 cargo flights a week in and out of the airfield, perhaps by year's end.

In anticipation of that presentation, opponents of cargo flights have been planting ''No FedEx'' lawn signs in Bedford, Concord, Lexington, and Lincoln, the communities surrounding Hanscom.

But the Memphis-based carrier doused those plans for now with an Aug. 15 letter to Peter Enrich, advisory commission chairman, from David M. Jensen, senior counsel in the carrier's regulatory office.

Jensen declined a Sept. 16 invitation from Enrich, noting that FedEx ''is continuing to explore options that might satisfy our current and projected requirements in the greater Boston market. . . . At such time as FedEx may determine to move forward with its presentation to HFAC, I will contact you in advance to discuss scheduling arrangements.''

What is not known is whether FedEx is playing a cat-and-mouse game or whether the carrier has taken Hanscom Field off its radar screen because of opponents' concerns about noise and traffic.

''It sounds like they've heard the message from hundreds of people'' and now believe that ''it's not good to proceed'' with any Hanscom plans, Enrich said in a phone interview last week after reading Jensen's letter.

Anna Winter, executive director of Save Our Heritage, a Concord-based historic preservation group, proclaimed in a written statement Monday: ''Community perseverance, backed by nationwide support, is prevailing over high-stakes politics and high-paid lobbyists. Clearly, the thousands of messages FedEx has received from citizens around the country . . . have resonated to the very top of the company.'' FedEx spokeswoman Pam Roberson was asked whether another statement by Jensen in his Aug. 15 letter acknowledged activist concerns.

Jensen wrote, ''Given the significance of our proposal to the communities in and around the Hanscom area, we believe it would be premature to make a presentation at the Sept. 16 HFAC meeting.''

Roberson said Jensen's statement ''has no bearing on our decision'' not to make a presentation at the advisory commission meeting next month.

Meanwhile, the Massachusetts Port Authority, the airfield's owner-operator, still believes that FedEx ''is very interested in Hanscom,'' spokesman Richard Walsh said. ''But they have to make a business decision. If they come, we'll work with them, as part of our smart-growth strategies for Hanscom Field.''

In its 2005-2015 environmental impact report on the airfield, Massport forecasts that there could be 520 cargo operations in 2005 and 1,560 operations in 2015.

This story ran on page 11 of the Boston Globe West on 8/28/2003. © Copyright 2003 Globe Newspaper Company. ==========
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