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Issue Overview
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Enjoying the Vance Brand aircraft noise?
Citizens who have lived here for years and who didn't give the airport much thought are asking "why did the aircraft noise get so much worse recently?" Vance Brand has a couple of bad noise and lead offenders that reside at the airport: Mile High Skydiving and the AeroSphere flight school. However, most of the traffic now is coming from Rocky Mountain Municipal Airport (RMMA) flight schools flying in from Broomfield, Jefferson County. These schools literally bring inexperienced students to Vance Brand to circle the airport incessantly and practice "touch-and-goes". What, why now? Boulder County and Superior filed suit (March 2024) against Jefferson County, claiming the owner of the Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (RMMA) has created a “public nuisance” by not doing more to reduce noise pollution and lead contamination from planes flying over nearby neighborhoods. Coinciding with this, the RMMA flight schools have moved a lot of their flight training to Vance Brand, to appear to be less of a nuisance to Broomfield, Superior, and Louisville. Didn't we ban lead in gasoline a long time ago? While leaded gasoline for use in on-road vehicles was completely phased out in 1996, leaded fuel, also known as aviation gasoline (avgas), is still used in piston-engine aircraft. Doesn't Longmont have a Voluntary Noise Abatement (VNAP) Program? Yes, but it's not communicated (well) or enforced. The Longmont airport manager, on the payroll of the City of Longmont, is a former Chief Pilot at McAir Aviation in Broomfield, and cares more about the |
flight schools than he does for the safety and well-being of
Longmont residents. Why don't we do something about this? Mainly because the City of Longmont, the City Council, City Attorney, the Airport Advisory Board, the Airport Manager, etc. perpetuate this myth: The Sponsor (city) of a city-owned airport, if that airport has taken FAA grant assurances money, cannot dictate flight operations at our airport without expressed approval from the FAA, i.e. our hands are tied. This is actually the opposite, and the basis for the RMMA lawsuit. Airport sponsors (i.e. the City of Longmont) have the authority and obligation to take care of airport issues regarding citizen safety and well-being. "...the “proprietor” and “sponsor” of the Airport, have the authority and obligation to abate the nuisance they are causing." Federal Aviation (FAA) Act - 49 U.S.C. § 40120(c) "... airport sponsors may adopt reasonable commercial minimum standards and/or airport rules and regulations." FAA Airport Sponsor Guidance Do we generate revenue from all the RMMA flight traffic? Nope. The visiting flight schools do not purchase their fuel here, nor do they pay landing fees. Longmont does not charge landing fees. Yet another myth that we can't charge landing fees. The City Council could authorize landing fees and a ban on touch-and-goes tomorrow. What can I do? Get informed. Attend City Council and Airport Advisory Board meetings. Send messages directly to Longmont Mayor [email protected]; Assistant City Manager [email protected], 303-774-4398; Transportation Manager [email protected], 303-651-8335. |
Further Reading
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Brought to you by concerned citizens from all across the Front Range and beyond.
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