The airport would actually be a large floating structure located about 10 miles off the coast. The Infrastructurist gives the low-down on the idea.
"In the midst of this pickle, along comes a fellow named Adam Englund. He's a local lawyer who studied international law at Cambridge and has long nurtured a fascination with the idea of floating cities. He's got an idea–a $20 billion business plan, even.
It's so incredibly simple, says Englund. We live next to all this open, watery space. Let's put the airport in the ocean."
Comments
Ridiculous
This is an extreme form of infringemnet on nature. How about we cut back on the number of flights we make- no cross country flights for three hour meetings, for example?
Ocean International Airport
$20BB?
Underwater train?
Please.
There are far simpler and CHEAPER solutions that are waived off because of politics and ego.
First solution:
Build a terminal on the border and share Rodriguez Field in Tijuana.
The runway is right on the border.
Passengers would never have to set foot in Mexico, arriving or departing.
Connect the terminal to the trolley or HSRR.
Second solution:
Use NAS North Island as a second, long haul only airport.
Build a prefabricated tube tunnel for trolley and cars to North Island. (This would have the added benefit of relieving the daily congestion across the city of Coronado.)
The long-haul jets would have a much safer approach to land and take off over ocean, not homes in Pt. Loma.
The North Island runway is over a mile from the ships.
There really is not that much military activity going on there anymore. (The docks, yes, the airfield, no.) Go up to Cabrillo National Monument (perched conveniently right above NAS North Island for a few hours and watch. (Just make sure homeland security is watching you.)