TagAviation Noise & Emissions Symposium(26)

Airlines for America presented at the 2023 Aviation Noise & Emissions Symposium at UC Davis, outlining U.S. airlines' environmental record and climate commitments, including a goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The presentation highlighted a 94% reduction in significant noise exposures since 1975, major improvements in fuel efficiency, and a target to make 3 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel available by 2030. Key pathways to further reduce emissions include new aircraft technology, operational improvements, modernized air traffic control, and the long-term potential of electric, hybrid, or hydrogen-powered flight.

Swift Fuels, a West Lafayette, Indiana-based company, presented on unleaded aviation gasoline at the Aviation Noise & Emissions Symposium 2023 at UC Davis. The company markets two premium unleaded avgas products: UL94, sold since 2015 with FAA STC approval and ASTM D7547 certification, and a forthcoming high-octane 100R formula. These fuels are designed as lead-free alternatives to conventional aviation gasoline, with approvals from both engine and airframe original equipment manufacturers.

The Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions Initiative (EAGLE) is a coalition of government and industry partners, including the FAA and major aviation associations, working to eliminate lead emissions from aviation gasoline by the end of 2030 without compromising the safety or efficiency of general aviation. The initiative operates through four key pillars: supply chain infrastructure and deployment, research and innovation, unleaded fuel evaluation and authorization, and regulation and policy activities. A presentation on the initiative was delivered at the Aviation Noise & Emissions Symposium at U.C. Davis on May 2, 2023.

At the 2023 ANE Symposium, Darlene Yaplee of the Aviation-Impacted Communities Alliance presented the FAA Community Engagement Scorecard (FAACES), a project designed to gather and analyze feedback from community groups on their experiences with FAA community engagement between 2020 and 2022 compared to before 2020. The scorecard examines whether FAA initiatives—such as the Community Involvement Manual, Chief Engagement Officers, noise portals, and roundtables—have led to meaningful improvements from the perspective of affected communities. The findings aim to identify recurring themes in community responses and offer recommendations for improving FAA outreach and engagement practices.

This presentation by attorney Peter J. Kirsch, delivered at the 2021 Aviation Noise and Emissions Symposium, examines anticipated legislative priorities related to aircraft noise and emissions in the new Congress. It references key noise measurement tools, including the Schultz Curve and a updated National Curve, both of which plot the percentage of people highly annoyed against Day-Night Average Sound Level (DNL) in decibels. The materials suggest growing public sensitivity to aircraft noise even at lower decibel levels, with implications for how policymakers may revisit the longstanding 65 DNL threshold used in federal noise compatibility programs.

This presentation by Sanford Fidell and Vincent Mestre, delivered at the UC Davis Aviation Noise and Emissions Symposium on February 26, 2021, discusses priorities and predictions for U.S. aircraft noise legislation. It is based on their book 'A Guide to U.S. Aircraft Noise Regulatory Policy,' which covers topics ranging from the history of noise regulation and its effects on communities to airport land use planning, noise mitigation, and potential future changes to regulatory policy.

A presentation by Tim Johnson of the Aviation Environment Federation, delivered at the Aviation Noise & Emission Symposium in February 2021, examines what civil society expects from a green recovery in the aviation sector. It highlights growing airline commitments to net-zero emissions by 2050, including pledges from British Airways, United Airlines, and others, while raising the question of whether 2019 may have been the peak year for aviation CO2 emissions. The talk explores the intersection of post-pandemic recovery and environmental accountability in the airline industry.

A 2021 seminar by DLR researcher Christiane Voigt examines how aviation contributes to climate change through CO2 emissions, contrail cirrus clouds, and NOx gases, with contrail cirrus identified as the largest single warming factor at 57.4 mW m⁻². The presentation outlines strategies to reduce aviation's climate footprint, including the use of alternative fuels, lean combustion technology, and contrail avoidance routing. Findings draw on data from recent aircraft measurement campaigns and observed emission reductions during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown.

This presentation by aviation consultant Jim Allerdice explores 'dispersion,' a strategy for reducing repetitive aircraft noise over residential neighborhoods by intentionally varying the lateral flight paths of aircraft. It distinguishes between natural dispersion, which occurs randomly with manually flown routes and air traffic control vectors, and systematic dispersion, which uses satellite-based navigation (RNAV) to spread flights across multiple precise, predictable tracks in a controlled way. Examples of systematic dispersion techniques discussed include radar vectors to RNAV, open Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs), and Equivalent Lateral Spacing Operations (ELSO).

This 2021 presentation by aviation consultant Jim Allerdice examines 'dispersion' — the practice of intentionally varying flight paths so that aircraft noise is spread across a wider area rather than repeatedly concentrated over the same neighborhoods. It explores the tension between the FAA's preference for Performance-Based Navigation (PBN/RNAV), which promotes precise, repeatable flight paths for safety and efficiency, and the concerns of communities living under those concentrated flight corridors. The material is relevant to ongoing debates about how airports like Sea-Tac can balance operational efficiency with equitable distribution of aircraft noise impacts.