Other thoughts:
How is air traffic different from pre-covid (such as 2010 to March 10, 2020)? There's a lot to think about based on topics raised in this article, but specifically to the question, has new technology has increased density of flights here? https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/18/business/planes-noise-flight-paths.html (and a follow-up article https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/19/technology/aviation-planes-drones.html)
Does our neighborhood receive more flyovers than is reasonably fair for the region? The data I'm collecting could answer this for a very short period of time (a week or weeks) in the limited area of lower Westchester; to be really fair, a larger radius from LGA could be considered.
I remember how quiet the neighborhood was in the week following 9/11 and (except for leaf blowers) during the first months (and even the year) of the covid shutdown. It was much nicer than last Sunday which was a near constant roar, but fortunately, not evey day is like that. For the more normal days now, has our expectations changed based on what we experienced in 2020-21 or because we are home more?
I recall being fascinated as a kid looking across the Long Island Sound at night from Mamaroneck and Larchmont at the lines of planes in the sky, one right after the other. We could see criss crossing paths of dots of light, sometimes more than twenty planes at once approaching or leaving JFK and LGA. I also recall playing baseball as a camper at Mt. Tom and some afternoons having plane after plane fly over the field just out of reach of any ball we could hit. Regardless of what this means for pollution, the economy, or our comfort here, for sure it's not new.
Regardless whether you agree with me, articles, such as this one, suggest that airplane noise could be more geographically specifically monitored. https://dailyvoice.com/new-york/harrison/politics/new-steps-taken-following-airport-noise-complaints-in-westchester/769672/ The article appears to be in reaction to HPN traffic, which has been a battle for mid-Westchester for at least 40 years, not LGA, JFK, and EWR. One of the interesting ideas from this artcle would be putting a noise monitor in our neighborhood. But be careful what you ask for. This could result in more flights, not fewer, if after a study it turns out we have fewer flights overhead than other neighborhoods and the FAA were to mandate more equitable distribution of noise. It is very likely other neighborhoods and individuals are already making complaints; I know circa 2010 there was a very vocal group in the Larchmont Manor who gained no traction.
Other articles below.
BTW, Oct 1, 2022 is a very quiet afternoon, although this helicopter was noticeable.
A NIMBY report on FAA flight paths to be changed 2007, but no follow-up on what really happened: https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/23colwe.html
More NIMBY, what happens when you shift flight patterns to assuage one neighborhood; the other neighbors get cranky. https://www.nytimes.com/1996/05/12/nyregion/the-great-outdoors-newark-flight-paths-change-but-all-isn-t-quiet-below.html
Key sentence from this 1996 article: "[T]he air space over the New York metropolitan area is the busiest in the world[.]"
"There are essentially two types of flight patterns for landing and taking off at Kennedy's four major runways: the VFR or the Visual Flight Rule, and the IFR, or Instrument Flight Rule." Planes often stray from prescribed FAA routes and this wreaks havoc on the people below.
We need to find out the LGA routes.
https://www.nytimes.com/1972/06/18/archives/flightpath-straying-scored-in-queens.html
This 1976 article begins with a very brief history of JFK before jumping to the Concorde, a large noisy and polluting aircraft. Why posting it here? Because noise complaints and lobbying are ineffective. https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/08/archives/long-island-weekly-in-the-concordes-flight-path-a-thunderhead-of.html
posted 2022-10-01