Cities tussle with El Mirage over F-35 noise issue
Editor’s note: This story is part of a special supplement to the Jan. 22 print edition of the Phoenix Business Journal. For more on the print edition: jbertolino@bizjournals.com.
The battle over noise concerns if the new F-35 fighter training mission comes to Luke Air Force Base has placed Glendale and El Mirage in a public relations and political skirmish.
El Mirage worries the F-35 fighter is louder than the F-16 jets that currently fly into and out of Luke. The West Valley suburb wants noise tests done to see how much louder the F-35 might be, and it could sue the U.S. Defense Department over the matter.
“You can ask questions about noise and still support the base. The jet may be noisier, and if it comes, everyone is going to have to deal with it,” said Stacy Pearson, a spokeswoman for El Mirage.
Glendale, where the base is located, has taken the lead in trying to attract the new F-35 fighter to Luke, which is the U.S. Air Force’s main training base for F-16 pilots. The F-35 is replacing the F-16 in the U.S. military arsenal, and Luke is on the short list for F-35 training along with bases in Florida, New Mexico, Idaho and Tucson.
Glendale spokesman Jerry McCoy said community support for Luke could help draw F-35 operations to the base.
“They’re going to base their decisions on what’s best for the national defense. But they also want to be in a community that’s supportive of them,” said McCoy.
Glendale has been garnering political, business and community support for Luke and the F-35. The main concern is that if the Pentagon picks another base for F-35 training, Luke’s mission could end and base could be closed.
The West Valley suburbs are no strangers to conflict. Glendale prevailed in recent court battles with El Mirage regarding decades-old strip annexations. El Mirage officials have hinted that if Glendale turns over some of that land, it could help ease El Mirage’s worries about Luke noise fast cash advance.
Arizona Sen. John McCain has asked the Department of Defense to have an F-35 fly over the region in an effort to determine how much noise will be generated by the new plane if it ends up being based at Luke.
Pearson and McCoy are not strangers, either. Pearson worked as a spokeswoman for the city of Glendale with McCoy before leaving for a post at Rose & Allyn Public Relations. Last year, El Mirage hired Rose & Allyn, headed by Jason Rose, to handle its PR on the F-35 and Luke. Policy Development Group previously handled PR for El Mirage.
Pearson said Glendale’s reaction to El Mirage’s noise concerns is disappointing.
“It’s been juvenile,” she said. “The two cities have not been the friendliest of neighbors. It is time to bury the hatchet and discuss noise.”
In its quest, El Mirage has drawn comparisons to Valparaiso, Fla., which filed a federal lawsuit regarding F-35 noise at Eglin Air Force Base, near Pensacola. Since Eglin held some F-35 test flights, the Florida town has complained about what it believes is an increase in noise compared with the F-16.
McCoy said the noise concerns in Florida may not mirror those at Luke because of the number of and the differences in how flights take off and land at the two bases. Glendale officials point out that El Mirage does not get all of Luke’s flight noise: Some flights follow a path over Goodyear, south of the base, for takeoff and landing. El Mirage is north of Luke.
McCoy said the F-35 issue is not about a rivalry between the two cities.
“We don’t look at it as Glendale-El Mirage,” McCoy said. “This is really a statewide issue.”