Photo credit: Pixabay
by Arline L. Bronzaft, Ph.D., Board of Directors, GrowNYC, Co-founder, The Quiet Coalition, and Honorary Chair, Quiet American Skies
Mohamed Anas Maaz, writing in Simple Flying, states “aircraft noise has been of the biggest concerns for airlines, airport authorities, and people residing near airports since the beginning of the jet age.” While I strongly agree that residents living with aircraft noise have long been concerned about the impacts of aircraft noise on their health, I wonder if this concern is shared by airlines and airport authorities.
Maaz identifies engines as a major source of aircraft noise but adds that noise is also generated by the airframe and from other systems such as the air conditioning. He goes on to explain how to reduce noise in the jets and discusses how modern engines can reduce the noise caused by its exhaust system. Yet, the fan in the front and the turbines can contribute to noise and so noise-absorbing materials have to be used to reduce the noise they produce. He adds that landing gear can contribute to noise in the airframe and says air conditioning can contribute to noise as well.
Takeoffs and landings are listed as sources of noise experienced by residents, and Maaz discusses ways to reduce noise levels in approach and landing. He says that pilots need to be trained to reduce noise when approaching airports, and notes that airports themselves can employ “solutions to reduce noise on the ground.”
Maaz’s article does a fairly thorough identification of the “sources of aircraft noise and the steps taken to reduce them,” but I wish he would have let his readers know how many airports and airlines are using the ways he identified to reduce aircraft noise and to what extent.
