Bad for Business? Most Not Threatened By Crash

There are so many planes that fly overhead each day, Stephen Wolsky has a tough time keeping track.

"You become so immune," the Mountain Ridge Country Club's general manager said. "It's a lot—two dozen, easily."

While Wolsky and members of the West Caldwell private club on Passaic Avenue have become accustomed to the aircrafts approaching and departing the nearby Essex County Airport, that doesn't mean they aren't concerned of a potential crash.

Their fears were heightened when a Cirrus SR22 aircraft crashed just outside of an office building on Daniel Road in Fairfield late Monday afternoon.

The single-engine, four-seat plane left Plattsburgh, N.Y., near the Canadian border, at 4:05 p.m., and was expected to land at the Essex County Airport at 5:32 p.m. 

According to authorities, the pilot tried several times to land on one of the runways, but the plane crashed on the final approach at 5:28 p.m., and burst into flames—killing all three New York residents on board—in an industrial area just north of the airport off of Passaic Avenue.

"We're always concerned," said Wolsky, a lifelong West Caldwell resident who has been the club's general manager for 14 years. "I saw the plume of smoke and I heard the sirens and I thought it was a plane crash.

"I'm sure there will be plenty of discussions about it among members this weekend. But there's not much you can do about it."

According to Wolsky, a plane crashed into a tree on the 18th fairway, killing the pilot during the 1970s, and more recently, a plane made a successful emergency landing within the past 10 years on the 10th fairway, causing no major injuries.

The airport has been trying to prevent pilots from flying directly over the club, a problem that has existed for years, Wolsky said.

"We're in constant contact with the airport. We've had some issues with us being under the direct flight path," he said.

"The airport has been very accommodating and put signs up for pilots at the end of the runway, reminding them to use the appropriate flight path, which is not directly over us, but there are still a number of planes that fly directly over our pool where our kids are and our clubhouse."

According to Wolsky, the Federal Aviation Administration has recently requested a number of trees be cut down in one area of the club to assist pilots approaching the runway. He expects this will be completed in the fall.

Formally known as Caldwell Airport, which opened in 1929, the space once housed the private plane of John F. Kennedy Jr., who flew from the airport with his wife and sister-in-law before a deadly crash killed all three en route to Martha's Vineyard on July 16, 1999.

But a threat of an accident hasn't been a concern for many area business owners.

When James McGregor, founder of Waveline Inc., purchased land in Fairfield at 160 Passaic Ave., he wasn't too worried with the amount of aircrafts soaring overhead.

In fact, being across the street from the small airport made the decision easier.

"He chose the location for the airport, for the convenience," his son, James, said. Both men, along with several other Waveline employees, are pilots.

"We have no concerns with the location," James McGregor added. "It's not at all a problem."

Bill Anzenberger, an employee of The Original Bagel Company, located at 2 Fairfield Crescent in West Caldwell,  said they have no problem being situated at the end of the runway.

"We've never had any concerns," he said. "It's actually fun to walk out your door and see a plane right above your head,"

Like Waveline, two of the OBC  owners are pilots. 

Anzenberger and McGregor, along with several other area business owners and employees, remain indifferent, not at all worried about the possibility of an accident like the one that occurred this week.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the exact cause of Monday's crash, though answers will not immediately be available.

"Fatal aircraft accidents take, on average, 12 months to complete," NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said Thursday. 

NTSB investigator Ralph Hicks explained that an examination of the engine and cockpit area have revealed no indication of a mechanical problem.

The plane came down within yards of Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning, where four people were working inside. Employees of the company said they have often considered the possibility of an aircraft accident occurring in the area.

The crash was less than one mile from the airport, a point Meghan Moran, coordinator of volunteer outreach at Caldwell College, was quick to point out when asked if she feels safe working near an airport.

"It's not close at all. It's three miles away," she said. "I'm not worried."

Most local business owners and residents have agreed with Moran.

West Caldwell Mayor Joseph Tempesta said that in his 20 years in local government, he has "never once received a phone call regarding the airport from a resident or company."

"I don't think anyone is concerned," said Tempesta, who did point out the FAA's request to trim trees at Mountain Ridge. "There are so many landings every day. West Caldwell only borders one small side of the airport. The businesses on Fairfield Crescent have been there for many, many years, without any real turnover, and never expressed concern."

At the Sunoco gas station adjacent to Waveline, employee Ridvan Yavuz was not even aware of the crash. "What happened?" he asked.

Once it was explained, he recalled hearing something on the news, or seeing it in a newspaper. But it was clear from the start of the conversation that Yavuz, who has worked at the Passaic Avenue gas station for 18 years, was not at all concerned.

"I hope nothing crashes here," he said after a few minutes of contemplation. "But there's no way of stopping it. You can't close down just because of one crash."

An employee at Cowdin Printing, located at 8 Fairfield Crescent in West Caldwell, said she has never been concerned. She declined to give her name, but said that no one at the company even knew about Monday's crash until she "got home and heard it on the news."

Angela O'Connor, an employee at Colonna's Deli, located at 20 Passaic Ave., wasn't worried for her own safety or that of the deli, but when she saw the helicopters around the scene, she immediately thought of her ex-husband. He lives across the street from the airport.

"You think about it, sure, but it's such a small airport," she said. "You're not going to move just because of one crash. But yes, on Monday, I was worried."