TagFAA(797)

This January 2020 FAA document updates a noise and air traffic policy for Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac), allowing the airport's control tower to automatically direct southbound turboprop aircraft to make a westerly turn shortly after takeoff during north-flow operations, between 6am and 10pm. The change, originally implemented in 2016 but suspended after a legal challenge by the City of Burien, underwent a thorough environmental and noise review before being reinstated. The FAA determined that while the procedure may slightly concentrate turboprop flight paths, the resulting noise increases remain well below federally established thresholds requiring further environmental review.

This January 2020 FAA memorandum explains pilot programs established or sunset by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, including programs for non-movement area surveillance systems, remote towers for rural communities, and environmental mitigation. It provides guidance to FAA regional and district office staff on eligibility rules, funding through the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), and sunset dates for each program. Note that this document addresses broad national airport policy and does not contain content specifically related to Sea-Tac Airport noise policy.

This January 2020 FAA document updates a flight procedure at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), allowing the airport's air traffic control tower to automatically direct southbound turboprop aircraft to make a westerly turn shortly after takeoff during north-flow operations, between 6am and 10pm. The change, which applies to roughly 90% of affected turboprop departures, was previously halted after the City of Burien filed a legal challenge. A thorough environmental and noise review found only minor noise increases in some areas, well below the FAA's thresholds requiring further review.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals mandate in Case No. 18-71705, City of Burien v. Daniel K. Elwell (Acting FAA Administrator) and Federal Aviation Administration. The formal mandate issued January 21, 2020 pursuant to Rule 41(a) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, giving effect to the court’s judgment entered November 27, 2019. Clerk Molly C.

The Burien Airport Committee met on December 17, 2019 to discuss ongoing concerns related to Sea-Tac Airport, including the city's legal findings against the FAA, the status of a University of Washington ultrafine particles study, and safety issues raised by Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. The committee also reviewed progress on the Sea-Tac Stakeholder Advisory Round Table (StART) and a Washington State Department of Commerce study, while planning priorities for 2020. Draft minutes from the November 18, 2019 meeting were included, detailing earlier discussions on noise reduction, environmental impacts, and a potential meeting with the EPA.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals partly sided with the City of Burien in its challenge against the FAA's approval of a flight procedure that routes low-flying turboprop planes westward over Burien after takeoff from Seattle-Tacoma Airport. The court found that the FAA acted arbitrarily and capriciously by failing to consider all reasonably foreseeable future actions at Sea-Tac when evaluating whether the procedure's cumulative environmental and noise impacts required a full environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FAA had attempted to exempt the procedure from such review by classifying it as a 'categorical exclusion,' but the court determined that the agency's cumulative impacts analysis was incomplete.

The City of Burien challenged the FAA's approval of a flight procedure that automatically routes southbound turboprop planes westward after takeoff from Seattle-Tacoma Airport, concentrating low-flying aircraft noise over the city. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that the FAA acted improperly by failing to consider all reasonably foreseeable future actions at Sea-Tac when it assessed whether the procedure's cumulative environmental and noise impacts warranted a full environmental review. The court agreed with Burien that the FAA's use of a categorical exclusion to bypass that review was arbitrary and capricious under the National Environmental Policy Act.