A coalition of eight aviation industry groups recently sent a letter about aviation noise to the chairmen and ranking members of the U.S. House and Senate Committees on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
The letter comes as Congress considers Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization legislation.
The coalition said the industry is committed to noise reduction advancements and urged Congress to avoid adopting any new noise reduction legislation. Since the late 1970s, aircraft noise has declined 94 percent, and between 2000 and 2016 noise exposure fell 53 percent, the letter said.
There already are aircraft noise management and community outreach provisions in place, the letter said. These include the Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise program and a 2016 amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.
“Amendments that decree new noise measuring protocols, metrics, or thresholds; dictate flight paths; and/or adopt airport-specific flight procedures or aircraft operating restrictions would be highly concerning,” the letter said. “Such legislative mandates would be shortsighted and counterproductive because they would seriously undermine the wide range of safety and environmental benefits associated with NextGen and the stability and connectivity of the national airspace system.”
Coalition members include the National Business Aviation Association, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, and the Aerospace Industries Association.