NOISE ABATEMENT
22 airportbusiness April 2017
By Mike Rikard-Bell
Aircraft
Noise
Complaints
– New
Responses
to
Annoyance
Taking a new approach to
noise complaints can drive new
approaches to mitigating issues.
Noise complaints from individuals and com-
munity groups are at the sharp end of the issue
with airports often handling large numbers of
highly charged calls and emails from concerned
neighbors. An emerging trend of airports being
flooded with emails and app-based complaints
is compounding the challenge with many air-
ports struggling to do much more than meet
their commitments to record contacts and pro-
vide rudimentary reports about the concerns
raised. These two dynamics are often doing
more to fuel annoyance than to address it.
The importance of effective management of
aircraft noise and the challenges in engaging
A
ircraft noise continues to grab media
headlines and the attention of politicians
around the world, continuously reminding
airport CEOs that community concerns
present one of the biggest threats to the
future of their airports. Without careful
management, they know that noise concerns have the
potential to trigger operating restrictions and frustrate
expansion plans.