New York Governor Kathy Hochul has brought an abrupt end to the aspirations of New York State Legislators, lead by Senator Brad Hoylman, to reduce the noise created by sightseeing helicopters overflying his District in Manhattan. On or about December 16, 2022, Governor Hochul vetoed SB 7493A, colloquially called “Stop the Chop,” which would have
Airspace
New Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigeig Gets Education on FAA’s NextGen Issues
The citizens’ organization, Quiet Skies, made up of communities around the nation impacted by airport operations, is making its views about the increasing impacts of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (“FAA”) NextGen initiative known to new Secretary of Transportation Buttigeig at the very dawn of his tenure. Alison Pepper, a Quiet Skies activist, has drafted a…
Communities Challenging NextGen Are In Good Company
Communities challenging, or considering a challenge, to the noise and other impacts from low-flying aircraft, enabled in new flight paths and altitudes by the Federal Aviation Administration’s (“FAA”) NextGen Initiative, may find some comfort in the knowledge that they are not alone. Communities from coast to coast, even including communities that are themselves airport proprietors, have recently joined the group of communities that earlier brought legal action against FAA to vindicate their citizens’ interests, some of which suits are only now approaching decision.
First chronologically, the City of Los Angeles, owner and operator of Los Angeles International Airport (“LAX”), brought suit in December 2019, in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, challenging a southerly shift in flight tracks of departing aircraft from Bob Hope (Hollywood-Burbank) Airport, City of Los Angeles v. FAA, Case No.19-73164, alleging FAA either failed to review the revised flight paths under NEPA, or failed to take action required by law to ensure reasonable compliance with assigned flight tracks. In its opposition, FAA first argued that it is not responsible for the divergence from established flight tracks, but, rather, it is due to “Acts of God,” such as wind, weather, and flocks of birds. It was only months later, when FAA realized that excuse wouldn’t “fly,” that it assumed responsibility by claiming the need to “vector” aircraft off established flight tracks for safety purposes. After Court-supervised mediation efforts were unsuccessful, briefing was completed in September 2020, but no decision has been made by the Court to date. That case is not by any means the end of the story.…
Continue Reading Communities Challenging NextGen Are In Good Company
A Guide to Navigating the DOD Siting Clearinghouse Process for Wind Farm Siting and Development
Attorney Paul Fraidenburgh shares insights from his recent meeting at the Pentagon about navigating the DOD Siting Clearinghouse process for the siting and development of new wind farms. Click here to read the full article.
The First Round in Petitioners’ Challenge to the SoCal Metroplex Project
Because the Federal Aviation Administration’s (“FAA’) airspace redesign projects throughout the United States have apparently negatively impacted hundreds of thousands, even millions, of people, and because we have received a number of requests for a discussion of the bases for the currently pending challenge to the FAA’s SoCal Metroplex airspace redesign project, a copy of…
Challenge to FAA’s Southern California Airspace Redesign Progresses
On Friday, March 16, 2018, Petitioners in Benedict Hills Estates Association, et al. v. FAA, et al., D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Case No. 16-1366 (consolidated with 16-1377, 16-1378, 17-1010 and 17-1029) filed an Opening Brief in their challenge to the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) in its realignment of flight paths over heavily populated…
Uber Flies High in FAA’s Airspace
The Los Angeles Times reports that Uber, the ridesharing company, plans to extend its reach into the stratosphere by developing an “on-demand air transportation service.” The plan appears to be that customers will use Uber’s surface transportation ride hailing system to hop a ride to a “vertiport” where an electrically powered aircraft will carry passengers to another vertiport at which they will be met by another phalanx of Uber drivers waiting to take otherwise stranded customers off the roofs of parking garages and into the traffic they supposedly avoided by using the proposed above ground transportation option.
Two More Southern California Cities and an Airport Join Culver City in its Challenge to the FAA’s Southern California Airspace Redesign
‘Barbara Lichman’ ‘Barbara E. Lichman’ ‘Paul Fraidenburgh’ ‘Paul J. Fraidenburgh’ ‘Culver City’ ‘Newport Beach’ ‘Laguna Beach’ ‘County of Orange’ ‘Orange County’ ‘John Wayne Airport’ JWA ‘Federal Aviation Administration’ FAA ‘Environmental Assessment’ EA ‘Finding of No Significant Impact’ FONSI ‘Southern California Metroplex OAPM’ OAPM ‘SoCal Metroplex’ ‘area navigation’ RNAV ‘day-night average sound level; LDN ‘Cumulative Noise Equivalency Level’ CNEL ‘Noise Integrated Routing System’ NIRS ‘Aviation Environmental Design Tool’ AEDT…
Continue Reading Two More Southern California Cities and an Airport Join Culver City in its Challenge to the FAA’s Southern California Airspace Redesign
Culver City to Challenge SoCal Metroplex Project
Culver City has issued a Press Release announcing its intention to file a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration related to aircraft overflights. Culver City has retained Barbara E. Lichman, Ph.D. of the firm of Buchalter Nemer to represent it its challenge to the SoCal Metroplex Environmental Assessment ("EA") and Finding of No Significant Impact…
Congressional Stalemate Persists over Air Traffic Control Privatization as FAA Reauthorization Deadline Approaches
The integration of cutting-edge aviation technology such as commercial drones and the modernization of our national airspace system are just a couple of the pressing aviation issues hanging in the balance this summer as Congress seeks common ground on FAA Reauthorization legislation.