Category : Meetings(460)

The StART (SEA Stakeholder Advisory Round Table) meeting held on August 23, 2023 via Zoom covered Boeing Commercial Aviation's safety and sustainability technologies, presented by ecoDemonstrator Program Manager Rae Lutters, and a Washington State legislative update from Representative Tina Orwall. The agenda also included updates from Port of Seattle staff on Federal Policy and Aviation Noise Working Group activities. The meeting was chaired by SEA Managing Director Lance Lyttle, with the next session scheduled for October 25, 2023.

This August 2023 meeting summary from the StART Aviation Noise Working Group covers efforts to reduce aircraft noise around Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, focusing on the Greener Skies program and its Optimized Profile Descents (OPD) approach, which allows planes to descend more quietly and efficiently using satellite-based navigation. Alaska Airlines presented on the successes and ongoing barriers to wider use of this approach, including expired FAA waivers, increased air traffic, and the cancellation of key sequencing tools. The meeting also reviewed the Port of Seattle's Late Night Noise Limitation Program, noting a decline in noise exceedances partly due to FedEx retiring its louder MD11 aircraft.

The StART Federal Policy Working Group met on July 17, 2023, to discuss federal funding developments and review a draft comment letter on the FAA's Noise Policy Review. Key topics included the status of FAA Reauthorization legislation, with four of seven StART priorities currently included in congressional bills, and efforts to add secondary noise insulation provisions. The group also reviewed noise measurement metrics and agreed on a July 31 deadline for member comments, with a final letter due to the FAA by September 29, 2023.

This document presents the agenda and key materials from the final meeting of Washington State's Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission (CACC), covering public engagement efforts, a recap of legislation ESHB 1791, and a commission member survey. The bill, signed by Governor Inslee, created a new Commercial Aviation Work Group (CAWG) to replace the CACC, though several sections were vetoed, including provisions for the CAWG task list, funding transfer, and immediate effect. A survey of commission members showed strong support (13 to 1) for the need for a new greenfield airport site to meet future commercial aviation capacity needs in the region.

This document summarizes community meeting responses collected under the 'Silence Is Golden' initiative, in which residents from neighborhoods near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport identified their biggest noise concerns and discussed the airport's value to the region. Across multiple community groups, Sea-Tac aircraft noise was consistently ranked as the top disturbance, alongside motorcycles, freeways, and household appliances. Participants also offered suggestions for making the airport a greater community asset, including better landscaping, viewing areas, quieter aircraft engines, fair property buyout programs for heavily impacted zones, and improved amenities such as restaurants and cultural exhibits.