Here We Go Again - Another Airspace Redesign for the East Coast
From 2002 to 2009, governmental and private entities from Connecticut to Pennsylvania, including the State of Connecticut, various local jurisdictions in New York State, environmental organizations in New Jersey, and the County of Delaware, Pennsylvania negotiated with, and ultimately challenged, a comprehensive redesign of the airspace affecting approaches and departures to every airport in the North Eastern United States. Of greatest concern, were new flight paths over dense populations and numerous parks and nature preserves without even a cursory nod to required noise or air quality analysis.
After much contention, FAA got its way. Apparently, however, the East Coast Airspace Redesign didn’t quite work out, because FAA is at it again. First, ostensibly because of persistent delays at Newark, JFK and LaGuardia that were supposed to have been remedied by the panacea of the East Coast Airspace Redesign, hundreds of additional flights will be rerouted from JFK over residential areas in Northern and Central New Jersey. To add insult to injury, the changes will be made through an FAA rulemaking process, and not through the formal processes that characterized the first round of redesigns.
Similarly, the FAA is proposing a modification of the Class B airspace surrounding Philadelphia International Airport that will expand areas impacted by overflight to an even greater extent than did the East Coast Airspace Redesign.
In short, those who are looking down the barrel of these changes should take the opportunity to comment on FAA’s proposals, not only to foster dialogue with FAA concerning the ongoing, increasing and apparently inadequately studied procedures and their impacts, but also to exhaust administrative remedies for a legal challenge should FAA continue to “gild the lily” of the East Coast Airspace Redesign with additional enhancements, to the detriment of already impacted residents and businesses on the ground.
The unilateral actions by the FAA, even in the face of stark opposition, suggest that the agency needs a massive overhaul. It seems to have no sense of balance, fairness or respect for the taxpayers/citizens/residents on whom they impose these overflights. There should be no room for such Machiavellian behavior in our federal agencies.
Susan- December 29,2010
It seems to me that the FAA caters to the airports and the massive amounts of money that they generate. The fact that they should be looking out for the citizens in the air and on the ground is no longer in there sights.There is only so much sky, and maybe there is not enough room up there to make more money!! After all this is the only reason for the actions being taken by the FAA. The destruction of homes, businesses,natural wildlife refuges, rivers, water tables and air quality are all little things that the FAA takes authority over. When asked about why the airport is allowed to over book planes, schedule the runways beyond capacity, and place planes over residential areas, their comment is that they do not have authority over how the airports run their business! Heck, I thought the FAA meant, Federal Aviation Authority," not let us make money in the sky no matter who we hurt."