Voluntary Noise Abatement

Aircraft altitude is established by Federal law. Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 91.119 of the General Operating and Flight Rules states that “Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitude: Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.”

It is important to be aware that most aircraft operating in the vicinity of the FMA are in the process of landing or taking off, thus this regulation does not apply. Helicopters are specifically exempted from this Federal regulation.

No. In 1990 Congress passed a comprehensive airport noise statute called the Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990 (ANCA). ANCA is still in effect today and  makes it extremely difficult for airports to initiate curfews and access restrictions without qualifying scientific documentation. FMA did undergo FAA-approved scientific studies to determine if noise levels justified curfews or access restrictions. These studies did not result in a finding of noise levels that would support curfews or access restrictions. FMA has a Voluntary Noise Abatement Program which emphasizes noise abatement, flight tracks and pilot education.

FMA’s voluntary flights tracks are used by pilots under ideal conditions only — typically when the weather is good and aircraft can fly under Visual Flight Rules (VFR). Also, factors such as weather and the presence of other aircraft will often predicate local Air Traffic Control instructions directing a flight path that is different from the recommended voluntary noise abatement flight tracks.

As mentioned above, voluntary noise abatement flight tracks are used only during periods of good weather.  During periods of reduced visibility (rain, fog, snow, smoke etc.), aircraft operators are obligated to conduct their operations via Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) many times flying specific predetermined instrument approach and missed approach paths. Due to the critical nature of IFR operations and instrument approach procedures, aircraft cannot stray off these established flight routes. Because of this, you may experience aircraft flying over the same area more frequently in bad weather as a result of the aircraft flying one of our instrument approach procedures flight paths.

Pilot education is a major part of our voluntary noise abatement program and the reporting of aircraft concerns assist the Airport in this effort. Each concern is reviewed for a determination. Staff attempts to follow up on each call in an effort to respond to the concerns expressed. Often, there are justifiable circumstances which may not seem apparent to the party expressing a concern. Late night medical evacuations are a good example of this. The concerns are then compiled into a monthly report which allows the Airport to see trends which assist staff in enhancing the education program. The program includes general outreach as necessary and individual contact with pilots.

No. The FAA prohibits the FMAA from pursuing punitive actions against a pilot who chooses not to use the voluntary noise abatement procedures. This is why the FMAA promotes “Good Neighbor Flying” among all tenants and users of the airport so that they will choose to comply with the procedures voluntarily.

Our voluntary noise abatement procedures discourage aircraft operators from landing from the north or departing to the north over the City of Hailey unless weather, aircraft performance, pilot experience and familiarity, company operations specifications, and/or Air Traffic Control instructions, necessitate otherwise.

Most commonly, departures to, or arrivals from the north are dictated by prevailing winds at the airport, at that time. Most aircraft have operating criteria preventing them from safely departing or landing with “tail winds” in excess of 10 knots. In other words, if winds out of the south were in excess of 10 knots at the airport, aircraft would quite likely elect to arrive from the north. If winds at the airport were in excess of 10 knots out of the north, aircraft would likely elect to depart to the north. In fact, some light aircraft are restricted from operating with any tailwind component whatsoever.

In short, airport staff works diligently to educate the pilot community about all aspects of our voluntary noise abatement program regarding its importance to our airport and community on the whole. However safety and the authority of the Pilot in Command take precedent.