POINT MUGU CONTENDS FOR MORE AIRCRAFT : OFFICIALS CITE ECONOMIC BENEFITS.

Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer

The Navy's Pacific Fleet is considering basing the next generation of F/A-18 jets - 92 aircraft in all - at Point Mugu, which would give Ventura County a huge economic boost, officials said.

The Point Mugu Naval Air Weapons Station, home to a small squadron of test jets, is vying for the aircraft with Lemoore Naval Air Station, near Fresno, and El Centro Naval Air Field, east of San Diego.

Navy officials are just starting their review, beginning with a year-long process to complete an environmental impact statement. The report will deal with issues ranging from noise and air pollution to facility improvements and housing, said Cmdr. Gregg Hartung, spokesman for the Pacific Fleet, based in San Diego.

``It was our observation that all three (bases) could viably support these aircraft,'' Hartung said. ``The purpose of this is to make sure we put these airplanes and the people that go with them in the best possible place.''

Although noise is expected to be a major issue, Ventura County government and business leaders are expected to push Point Mugu as the best base for the next generation of F/A-18s.

``To me, it looks like a good thing,'' said Supervisor John Flynn, who has helped lead efforts to keep the Naval Air Weapons Station and the Naval Construction Battalion Center, in Port Hueneme, off the federal government's base closure list.

Flynn recently helped form a group of Southern California counties into a coalition to keep military facilities open or convert them for other uses. He contends that such efforts keep bases like Point Mugu on the Navy's radar screen.

Point Mugu and Lemoore both remain in the hunt to gain four squadrons of the Navy's E2-C Hawkeye. Those 16 planes, which function as flying aircraft controllers, now are based at Miramar Naval Air Station, which is set to become a Marine Corps base by October.

``This fits in within that objective of adding business at Point Mugu. However, with the F/A-18s you have to be sensitive about the noise,'' Flynn said. ``What it would do if they did come in is secure the future of the base.''

The two Ventura County bases together account for some 7,500 jobs and $1.2 billion in total dollars, mostly payroll, Flynn said.

The 92 F/A-18s would bring 1,550 additional personnel to Point Mugu, Navy officials said.

Manufactured by McDonnell-Douglas, the F/A-18 Hornet is going to become the workhorse of the Navy's air forces, replacing first the A-6 Intruder and later the F-14 Tomcat, Hartung explained.

The four existing F/A-18 models are based at Lemoore and Cecil Field, in Jacksonville, Fla.

Only one of the two new models is being flown for testing and evaluation. The plane completed its first landing on an aircraft carrier earlier this year and is not in production, Hartung said.