TagRegional Airport System Plan(8)

The 2001 Regional Airport System Plan, published by the Puget Sound Regional Council in August 2001, is a comprehensive planning document for airports across the Central Puget Sound Region and serves as a modal component of the long-range transportation plan known as Destination 2030. Prepared with input from a Regional Airport System Plan Advisory Committee and partially funded through a Federal Aviation Administration planning grant, the plan addresses aviation infrastructure, capacity, and noise considerations for the region. It covers policy and development guidance for airports in the greater Seattle–Tacoma area, though its contents do not necessarily reflect official FAA policy or commitments.

In April 1993, the Puget Sound Regional Council adopted Resolution A-93-03, amending its Regional Airport System Plan to address long-term commercial air transportation needs for the central Puget Sound region. The resolution established a dual-track strategy of pursuing both a major supplemental airport within the four-county area and a third runway at Sea-Tac Airport, with the third runway to be authorized by April 1, 1996 unless a viable supplemental site could eliminate that need. Key conditions attached to the third runway approval included independent evaluation of demand management programs and measurable noise reduction performance objectives, while small supplemental airports such as Paine Field were eliminated as preferred alternatives.

In April 1989, the Port of Seattle Commission passed Resolution No. 3042 authorizing the Executive Director to enter into an agreement with the Puget Sound Council of Governments (PSCOG) to develop a long-term regional air carrier system plan for the Puget Sound area. The resolution was prompted by a recognized need for additional air carrier capacity beyond the year 2000, following a 1988 Airspace Study Update of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The agreement allowed the Port to seek federal FAA funding and hire consultants to study long-term aviation capacity options for the region.

This 1987 Draft Environmental Impact Statement from the Puget Sound Council of Governments evaluates alternatives for expanding and managing the regional airport system through the year 2020, assessing their potential environmental and economic impacts. The study found that all alternatives would generate significant impacts to both natural and human environments, with the key difference being whether those impacts would be concentrated at existing airports or spread across new locations. Extensive mitigation measures were identified as necessary for any chosen alternative, and no single option was found to be clearly superior to the others.

The 1988-2020 Regional Airport System Plan, published in October 1987, outlines policies for managing and developing public-use airports across King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish counties through the year 2020. A central finding is that Sea-Tac Airport was projected to reach full capacity within 10 to 15 years, with intolerable aircraft delays expected unless alternative measures were taken. The plan also addresses noise and flight track mitigation programs, land use compatibility near airports, and the potential role of satellite airports such as Paine Field, Bremerton National, and Tacoma Narrows in relieving pressure on Sea-Tac.