After years of complaints and political battles by residents, the Federal Aviation Administration has announced plans to set up a complaint system to track helicopter noise in the Los Angeles area.
Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, on Monday announced the FAA will allocate $250,000 to set up the system as an “important role in helping to stem disruptive helicopter noise plaguing residents across Los Angeles County.”
FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the year-long program, expected to start in the next several months, will set up comprehensive helicopter noise complaint system.
“Stakeholders, both community groups and helicopter operators, will have an opportunity to provide input on the design of the complaint box,” Gregor said. “The data will help us better understand what kinds of operations are raising noise concerns — what type of helicopter, what type of operation and what routes.”
Schiff and Sen. Dianne Feinstein pushed through a bill requiring the FAA to act within a year to find a voluntary way to reduce helicopter noise.
Schiff said it was the pressure from homeowner groups that contributed to forcing the FAA to act.
Richard Close, president of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association, said the complaints escalated during Carmageddon when the 405 Freeway was shut down.
“This will be a fantastic program because the helicopter pilots now say they are not creating the problem, that it is the media or police helicopters,” Close said. ‘This program will let us be able to track the helicopters live on where they are coming from and the time of day.
“Pilots have been unwilling to accept responsibility. What we hope this leads to is some regulations on flights. And, it is not just us in the Valley. This is a countywide problem.”
Schiff said the complaint system will provide a benchmark for officials in determining what kind of regulations are needed.
“I’m looking forward to working with the operators, homeowners and the FAA to make sure that we meet the urgent need for noise relief,” Schiff said.
Bob Anderson, president of the Los Angeles Area Helicopter Noise Coalition that included residents from across the county, said they have been looking for a countywide noise complaint system.
“The request we most often hear from residents impacted by helicopter noise it ‘where can I complain?’ The answer, sadly, was nowhere,” Anderson said. “This system will now give all residents countywide a place to lodge helicopter noise complaints and will provide irrefutable data identifying helicopter noise hot spots, so our organization can work with pilots and the FAA to stop the noise.”
- Source: http://www.presstelegram.com
FAA To Create Public Complaint System For Helicopter Noise
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — For the first time ever, federal regulators are expected to respond directly to public complaints about helicopter noise throughout Los Angeles County.
KNX 1070’s Ed Mertz reports the Federal Aviation Administration has announced the air traffic regulatory agency will fund a system that allows residents to file complaints over excessively loud helicopters.
In an email, FAA regional administrator Glen Martin said the agency has approved funding for the complaint system, which is expected to be operational by early 2015, The Daily News reported.
Details about the system, including estimated costs and functionality, were not immediately disclosed.
But longtime advocates for helicopter noise restriction such as Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO he was encouraged by the announcement.
“Right now, all the helicopter operators point fingers at each other, blaming one another, and this will help us get to the bottom of the truth as to who’s really causing the noise,” said Schiff.
The action comes after more than a decade of complaints from homeowners about disruptions caused by news choppers, paparazzi, tour operators and public safety agencies.
In June 2013, Schiff, along with Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, has introduced the Los Angeles Residential Helicopter Noise Relief Act (H.R. 456), which would require the FAA to set regulations relating to flight paths and altitudes for helicopter flights in LA County.
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