Federal Express delivery at Hanscom
A Boston Herald editorial
June 23, 2003

They must be shaking in their boots at Federal Express headquarters in Memphis at the mere thought that the anti-Hanscom forces are planning a national protest against them. Their misdeed? That the company would dare to consider using a public airport to conduct their business.

No, those cargo planes had better just keep on flying over the homes of Winthrop, Chelsea and East Boston, not in the rarified skies over the Minuteman National Historic Park and its environs.

Allow us to interject with a few facts before the latest ``the world will end'' hysteria goes any further.

Federal Express is interested in bringing one flight - one flight - to Hanscom. The company flies Airbus 300s which have the quietest engines available in the commercial fleet. Assertions that one flight will lead to uncontrolled cargo growth are wrong. Even at Logan Airport, Federal Express is hardly a blip on the proverbial radar screen, flying a grand total of 10 flights a day.

The company will voluntarily comply with the noise rules governing Hanscom Field operations (aircraft taking off or landing after 11 p.m. are subject to extra airport fees) even though they're likely illegal under federal law.

A comprehensive study found no appreciable environmental impact associated with cargo activity at Hanscom. And, of course, it's the impact, not the kind of flights - be they cargo, commercial or private - that matters.

But if a boycott of Federal Express is in the offing, here's a suggestion. The boycott should also target Raytheon, Oracle, Sun Microsystems, the hundreds of other major companies in the area and every Main Street shop in Concord, Lincoln, Lexington and Bedford. All of these businesses have surely received or sent a Federal Express package at one time or another.

And for good measure, the boycotters should target that new industrial park in Bedford being touted by state leaders to attract even more businesses to the area.

For here's one final stubborn little fact. Hanscom Field aviation activity will grow directly as a result of the businesses Hanscom area towns are trying so hard to attract to increase their tax base. The more thriving businesses in the area, the more flights of corporate jets. And the more a company like Federal Express will be interested in locating near its customer base.

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