Why electric airplanes are no panacea

The (very) good news is that there is more than one zero-emission aviation technology coming. But at the risk of being Mr. Negative, at least for airport communities, electric airplanes are no panacea. And we say that not to inspire despair but to tell residents the realities, which are: Each of these alternatives comes with

Are the airplanes getting louder and lower?

No. And maybe. Objectively speaking, individual aircraft flyovers near Sea-Tac Airport are not getting lower or louder. (Before you click away in disgust, note that some of our members live as low as ‘760’, ie. when correcting for sea level less than 400 feet directly under the belly of an aircraft. No one is more

So you want to be a Port Commissioner?

The purpose of this explainer is is sort of a handy one-pager for candidates for a seat on the Port Commission. In the past two elections I’ve met with numerous candidates to discuss what the Port Commission might be able to do to help airport communities address the negative impacts from Sea-Tac Airport. The answer.

Why is it getting so much worse? (NextGen For Dummies)

Spoiler alert: The answer is not ‘The Third Runway’. However, you might call the current situation for residents in certain neighborhoods around Sea-Tac Airport a ‘Perfect Storm’. What’s The Frequency, Kenneth? Yes, there has been a great deal of growth in the number of daily operations. First, there is the fact that in 2012 Delta

Who decides what happens at Sea-Tac Airport?

If you’re trying to get some relief from all the flights, you probably will have some questions like, “Who do I blame?” And it gets confusing because there are three entities that share responsibility for everything that goes on at Sea-Tac Airport: the FAA, The Port Of Seattle, and the airlines. The Operator: Property Manager

The Port Package Explainer

A severe example of damage from a poor Port Package installation. Moisture gets behind the window and over time causes the framing to rot. If the member is load bearing, eventually, this can cause the entire wall to deform.

The history of sound insulation systems around Sea-Tac airport Over the past thirty years roughly 9,400 homes have received noise mitigation retro-fits from the Port Of Seattle known as ‘Port Packages’. Many people think of a Port Package as ‘windows’, but really they are a complete system, which often takes the form of sound-rated windows, doors

DNL65 For Dummies

There is a geographic area around every large airport where, according to a formula developed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the ‘noise’ level is equal to or greater than 65 decibels DNL (Day Night Level). That area is depicted on a noise exposure map (NEM) and referred to as the Noise Boundary or just

Runways

We love this image because it makes clear the confusing nomenclature of runways. Intro Sea-Tac is a category IIIb certified airfield, allowing operations in all but the worst conditions. There are three runways: Runway #1 16L/34R – 11,901 feet Runway #2 16C/34C – 9,426 feet Runway #3 16R/34L – 8,500 feet The southern ends of