Presentation to FAA Regional Administrator Glen A. Martin

FAA Western Pacific RegionTuesday, October 14, 2014

Situation Raised by the Residents of Benedict Canyon.

• Residents of Benedict Canyon have been negatively impacted by aircraft noise from departing aircraft from Burbank and Van Nuys airports as they pass over the Canyon while in their respective southwestern and southeastern climbs to cruising altitude.

• Toward resolving this issue, FAA conducted its analysis in February, 2012.

• Residents met with Acting Regional Administrator David Suomi on July 2, 2013. Nothing was resolved.

• Residents hired Taber Law Group, P.C. to understand their legal rights. We recommended dialog instead of litigation.

• Barry Yurtis & Associates was hired to perform an airspace analysis and help develop a solution to the residents’ issues without litigation.

What This Proposal Does and Does Not Do.

• Residents believe there has been an increase in aircraft noise over Benedict Canyon in the last few years. Our purpose is not to argue the validity of this point.

• We do ask the FAA to acknowledge residents' perception of increased noise over their homes.

• Our purpose is to provide a reasonable solution to the noise problem - not to assign causation.

Existing departures from Burbank and Van Nuys

• From Burbank the departure of concern is the VAN NUYS ONE DEPARTURE.

• From Van Nuys, the departure of concern is the NEWHALL 8 DEPARTURE.

• Aircraft do fly over Benedict Canyon.

VAN NUYS ONE DEPARTURE

NEWHALL 8 DEPARTURE

Aircraft Over Benedict Canyon

• As we will see in the next few slides, there is no question that aircraft do fly over Benedict Canyon.

• These slides are taken from the FAA’s analysis from 2012.

Benedict Canyon

Benedict Canyon

Problems as We See It

• The conventional VAN NUYS ONE DEPARTURE leaves the timing of the initial right turn from runway heading to a heading of 210 solely to discretion of the pilot, followed by a controller initiated radar vector to the north based on dynamic air traffic situations.

• This means the aircraft using this departure will fly over Benedict Canyon and other places over the Hollywood Hills

Problems as We See It

• The conventional NEWHALL 8 DEPARTURE leaves the timing of the initial left turn to a heading of 110 solely to the discretion of the pilot, followed by a controller initiated radar vector to the northwest based on dynamic air traffic situations.

• Like the VAN NUYS ONE, this means the aircraft using this departure will fly over Benedict Canyon and other places over the Hollywood Hills.

Problems as We See It

Thus, there are 2 contributing factors to routing aircraft over the Hollywood Hills: (1) the pilot's decision as to when to turn to the initial heading of 210 or 110 degrees; and (2) the point in space when the air traffic controller initiates the radar vector to the north.

Solution:

Design and implement new NextGenPerformance Based Departure Procedures from

both Burbank and Van Nuys airports

Solution for Burbank Airport

• Design a new RNAV Departure procedure for jet aircraft departing Runway 15 containing a course and ground track that would position aircraft directly over the Ventura Freeway as they proceed on a westerly course prior to proceeding north.

• This action would not only provide noise relief to the residents of Benedict Canyon, but would also alleviate the noise impact to the residents of the San Fernando Valley.

Solution for Van Nuys Airport

• Design a new RNAV Departure procedure for jet aircraft departing Van Nuys Runway 16 containing a course and ground track that would place aircraft directly over the Ventura Freeway as they proceed on their initial easterly course; then over the Hollywood Freeway as they proceed on their northerly course.

• Similar to the proposed Burbank Departure procedure, this action would provide noise relief to the residents of Benedict Canyon and would also alleviate the noise impact to the residents of the San Fernando Valley.

Benedict Hills and Environs

Benefits to the FAAWe believe that this proposal would be beneficial to the FAA as well as the residents of Benedict Hills, since these actions would assist the FAA:• In achieving the NextGen strategic goal of reducing the

number of people exposed to significant noise around airports in absolute terms. (FAA : NextGen and the Environment, February 2012)

• In integrating NextGen capabilities into the NAS by developing RNAV (RNP) procedures wherever possible. (Title II, FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012)

• In abating noise in residential areas “by [implementing] flight operational procedures . . . in ways that minimize noise impact on residential areas, consistent with the highest standards of safety.” (FAA Noise Abatement Policy, November 1976)

Win-Win Solution• Our solution is in line with the FAA’s environmental

vision for NextGen, which provides environmental protection that allows sustained aviation growth.

• FAA fulfills its goals and responsibilities under the FAA Reauthorization Act and under its policy of controlling aircraft noise through operational flight control measures by reducing the number of people exposed to significant noise around airports in absolute terms.

• The Benedict Canyon residents’ goal of reducing aircraft overflights would also be achieved without litigation.

Going Forward . . .

• While we recognize that a final decision regarding departure procedures are not necessarily made by the Regional Administrator, we would welcome your suggestions and support for this proposal.

• We hope to present this proposal for RNAV procedures at Burbank and Van Nuys to FAA’s Air Traffic and Flight Procedures offices in Renton, WA and to speak to the NATCA representative in San Diego, CA.

• We would welcome any comments or suggestions you might have regarding this plan.

Contact InformationSteven M. Taber

Taber Law Group, P.C.1 League, #60036

Irvine, California 92602(949) 735-8217

E-mail: staber@taberlaw.comWebsite: http://taberlaw.com

Blog: http://airportlaw.wordpress.comTwitter: @TaberLawGroup

Barry Yurtis can be contacted through Taber Law Group, P.C.