Planned Flight Paths Spur Arguments
Hearing set
-- The Federal Aviation Administration has set an environmental assessment hearing on its proposed changes in Sea-Tac Airport flight patterns for 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday at Cleveland High School, 5511 15th Ave. S.
FEDERAL WAY
When the wind blows from the north, residents in Federal Way can expect 133 more jets a day to descend toward Seattle-Tacoma International Airport if the Federal Aviation Administration adopts a plan now open to public comment.
``I think any change will be the straw that breaks the camel's back,'' said Neville Thompson, a 20-year Federal Way resident. ``I was prepared to accept (the jet noise), but now that I see that things are getting worse, we're not willing to accept it anymore.''
Thompson said he plans to rally others to fight the proposed flight-path change and attend a public hearing Wednesday on the plan in Seattle.
The FAA's proposal has prompted local legislators to introduce three bills that could restrict aviation statewide.
To reduce delays and ease congestion, the FAA wants to change flight paths so southbound planes can arrive side by side at Sea-Tac, instead of single file, as they do now, said Temple Johnson, the FAA's manager of air traffic for the Northwest Mountain Region.
Most of the flight-path changes would occur north of the airport, but some paths must be rerouted in the South End to support the plan, he said.
At present, when the wind blows from the north, 133 jets a day descend over Puyallup to Sea-Tac. The FAA wants to shift this path west over Tacoma and Federal Way.
When the wind blows from the south, which is about 60 percent of the time, planes leave Sea-Tac southbound.
The FAA would move departing jets that now fly over Vashon Island to a pathway over Commencement Bay and Tacoma.
And jets that currently fly above Federal Way and central Tacoma would shift farther west over Dash Point in Federal Way and continue over Commencement Bay and west Tacoma.
Those changes would translate into 128 jets a day above Tacoma if the wind was blowing from the south, compared with 92 today.
The change in South King County noise levels would be insignificant, the FAA's Johnson said.
The daily average noise levels at Dash Point in Federal Way could increase by 1.4 decibels for arrivals and 1.1 decibels for departures, according to a study by Paul Dunholter of Mestre Greve Associates. Dunholter is a consultant to the Sea-Tac Noise Mediation Committee.
But the measurements do not gauge people's sensitivities to noise or their annoyance to loud, infrequent noise,, Dunholter said.
Tacoma City Councilman Greg Mykland and Rex Lester, member of the Tacoma West Slope Neighborhood Coalition, said noise shouldn't be a problem over Tacoma because the planes are fairly high at that point.
Arriving jets would be about 6,000 to 8,000 feet above Tacoma and departing jets roughly between 12,000 and 13,000 feet, Johnson said. But planes will pass above Federal Way at about 4,000 feet or lower.
State Rep. Jean Marie Brough, R-Federal Way, and some other legislators are convinced that the solution to airport congestion and noise is creating and developing other airports in the region.
She is co-sponsoring a bill with Rep. Gary Locke, D-Seattle, that would allow the state Department of Licensing to levy airport-use fees at Sea-Tac Airport and Boeing Field.
Planes would be charged $25 for landing or departing between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. and $50 between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. Advanced-design planes, with the quietest engines, would receive an 80 percent discount.
The estimated $16 million raised in the next two years by this bill would be used for noise mitigation and airport planning and development, Brough said. Sea-Tac Airport and Boeing Field would be ineligible for development money.
Rep. Greg Fisher, D-Des Moines, also has introduced a bill calling for a statewide transportation commission to plan and study long-term aviation needs. Fisher said he expects federal funds to pay for more than 90 percent of the estimated $750,000 study.
A bill introduced by Sen. Mike Patrick, R-Renton, and Rep. Glyn Chandler, R-Moses Lake, would expand Grant County Airport at Moses Lake and construct a high-speed rail system linking it to Sea-Tac Airport through Bellevue. The estimated $3 billion project would be financed by government and private funds.
All three bills are pending hearing dates in the House and Senate Transportation committees.
The FAA is conducting its own assessment to determine if a full environmental impact statement of its flight-path plan is needed. The FAA's public hearing is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday at Seattle's Cleveland High School.
South End flight paths
The Federal Aviation Administration plans to reduce westside airspace congestion and increase the number of planes that can land southbound at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Most of the changes are north of the airport, but the FAA says the changes below in the South end are needed to balance plan.
Northbound arrival
Shift northbound arrival flights that travel over Puyallup to a pathway over Tacoma and Federal Way.
Southbound departure
Move southbound departures that travel over Vashon island to a pathway over Commencement Bay and Tacoma.
SOURCE: Mestre Greve Associates, Federal Aviation Administration