October 2020 MCQSC Update: Presentation on New Flight Procedure Concept and Supersonics Update
Greetings!
A new flight procedure concept will be presented and discussed at the Community Working Group meeting this week, and we have an update for you on pending regulation of supersonics.
New flight procedure concept to be discussed at this Thursday’s Community Working Group
The Montgomery County / Arlington County consulting group, ABCx2, will be giving an introductory presentation at the upcoming Reagan National Community Noise Working Group (CWG) meeting this coming Thursday (6-8 pm) about an idea that might help to mitigate noise for communities north of the airport. The idea, which could help to disperse aircraft approaching the airport, is called a Terminal Arrival Area (TAA) concept. The idea would have to receive CWG endorsement and then FAA approval in order to be tested. The presentation is likely to be technical, but may be of interest to some of our members. If endorsed, the next stage would be to formally ask the FAA for a 180-day test phase of the concept.
The CWG meeting will be held via zoom on this coming Thursday evening 10/22 from 6-8 PM, and is open to the public although there may be a limit on how many people can be accommodated (we’re not sure). Members of the public may click this URL to join: https://mwaa.zoom.us/j/99821536654.
MCQSC will send a follow-up email after the meeting explaining what happened if the TAA concept is endorsed and is moving forward, so don’t worry if you can’t attend!
2. Supersonics regulations update
Many MCQSC members submitted comments last summer to the FAA on its proposed rulemaking regarding supersonic aircraft. Thank you! MCQSC doesn’t have any information about the future of supersonic flight in the D.C. area. However, since the Concorde used to operate out of Dulles (which operates below capacity), this seems like a possibility.
An August 2020 article by the International Council on Clean Transportation (somewhat technical but interesting) provides an update on next steps. The bottom line seems to be that the FAA's go-it-alone approach on trying to regulate supersonic travel is not winning any friends around the world. The rest of the world wants a standard to be set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), as the market for supersonics will be international.
A few highlights from the article:
….In public comments submitted, FAA’s proposal was heavily criticized by individuals and citizen groups impacted by airport noise, major airports, environmental groups, and European governments that oppose further SST development. Trade associations representing European (think Airbus) and Canadian (think Bombardier) manufacturers also oppose the U.S. go-it-alone approach.
Collectively, these comments highlight that the purported “inevitable” supersonic renaissance is actually quite contentious, in part due to environmental concerns that the FAA does not address in its proposal. These include evidence that emerging commercial SSTs may emit 5 to 7 times as much CO2 per passenger as comparable subsonic aircraft on common routes, and that unconstrained SST deployment could expose parts of Europe and North America to sonic boom as frequently as once every five minutes.
….So, where do we go from here? The FAA will next decide whether to finalize this rule or to defer to the ICAO rulemaking, as a large majority of aviation stakeholders have urged it to do. Deferment seems likely given that an international standard will be needed to unlock most of the market….