Brackett Field

A public hearing on a proposal by the Sheriff's Department to relocate its airplanes and helicopters to Brackett Field in La Verne will be held at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the La Verne Community Center, 3660 D St. The department proposes to relocate 17 helicopters and two fixed-wing aircraft from Long Beach to Brackett.

A pilot died Friday, a day after his small plane crashed in a San Dimas park while trying to land in thick fog. Hugh Gallagher, 57, of Big Bear Lake died of massive head injuries, a hospital spokeswoman said. Gallagher was trying to land at fog-shrouded Brackett Field in La Verne on Thursday when the plane crashed at Frank G. Bonelli Regional County Park.

Brackett Field, one of five small airports owned by Los Angeles County, will get a $900,000 upgrade in its lighting systems and equipment, officials said. The county has awarded a $900,000 contract to Tom Watson Inc. to replace the lighting system, widen the runway and replace guidance symbols, officials said. Nearly all the money will come from the Federal Aviation Administration's airport improvement program. The airport averages 450 takeoffs and landings a day.

A woman and two men pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of manufacturing methamphetamine inside an aircraft hangar at Brackett Field. Michelle Norman, 29, of Chino, John Petersen, 46, of La Verne and David Sarratt, 33, of Alta Loma were arraigned in Pomona Municipal Court and remained in custody on $500,000 bail each, authorities said.

County supervisors Tuesday approved preparation of a $150,000 master plan for new development at Brackett Field, a 208-acre county airport for small planes in La Verne. However, the plan may not be completed nor options for new construction presented to the supervisors until 1991, said Jean Granucci, spokeswoman for the county Aviation Division.

The crash of a private jet in which the two top executives of the In-N-Out Burger chain were killed Wednesday afternoon may have been caused by heavy turbulence from a Boeing 757 landing just ahead of it at John Wayne Airport, federal investigators said Thursday. The fiery crash into a field next to the Santa Ana Auto Mall also killed three others aboard the plane, but no one was hurt on the ground. The crash occurred at the height of the evening rush hour. In-N-Out President Richard A.

The Pomona City Council has voted to oppose a plan by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to move its helicopter squadron from Long Beach Airport to Brackett Field in La Verne. The move to nearby La Verne would "jeopardize the safety, security, peace and quiet of the residents of Pomona," the council declared Monday. The department is considering moving its squadron to La Verne because of a rent increase at Long Beach Airport. Sheriff's Cmdr.

The Pomona City Council has voted to oppose a plan by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to move its helicopter squadron from Long Beach Airport to Brackett Field in La Verne. The move to nearby La Verne would "jeopardize the safety, security, peace and quiet of the residents of Pomona," the council declared in a resolution adopted Monday. Area Cmdr. Lee Baca of the Sheriff's Department said the squadron has operated without complaint from neighbors in Long Beach.

A student pilot and his instructor escaped injury when a helicopter was set off balance as its tail touched the ground Wednesday while it was coming in for a landing. It crashed just short of an airport runway. The student pilot was trying to land the BH-57 helicopter shortly before 2:30 p.m. when it crashed at Brackett Field Airport in La Verne, about 32 miles east of Los Angeles, Police Sgt. Paul Allen said.