Federal Aviation Administration Official to Attend Crucial Airport Meeting
Hoping to convert voluntary noise-abatement procedures into enforceable federal rules, Norwood Airport Commission Chairman Walter J. Grady announced that a high-level meeting with federal authorities is scheduled for next week to tackle rising airplane noise.
Gerald Curtin, northeast regional director of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), will attend Wednesday’s commission meeting to discuss solutions. While the town of Norwood previously published advisory takeoff and landing guidelines instructing pilots to avoid flying at low altitudes over surrounding residential neighborhoods, local officials lack the legal authority to enforce them.
“Some pilots either can’t follow the directions or just don’t follow them,” Grady explained, emphasizing that only the federal government maintains jurisdiction over aircraft in flight. “The FAA can turn procedures with no teeth into regulations with a bite.”
Norwood Airport Flight Noise Guidelines & Operations
Airport Traffic & Community Impact
- Annual Traffic Volume: Recorded 160,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings last year at the facility off Neponset Street near Route 1.
- Regional Activity: Ranked as the third-busiest airport in New England.
- Community Resistance: According to Mary Fox, member of Stop Norwood Airport Growth (SNAG), larger twin-engine and turboprop aircraft are increasing noise levels over expanding neighborhood areas.
Published Local Noise-Abatement Guidelines
- East-West Runway: Pilots taking off are instructed to avoid making left-hand turns.
- Main Runway: Landing approaches should avoid left-hand downwind turns over populated areas.
- Helicopters: Operators must remain within airport airspace until reaching an altitude of 1,500 feet.
Future Airport Improvements Tied to Noise Containment
Adding to the significance of Wednesday’s session, Arnold Stymest, director of the Massachusetts Aeronautics Commission and former director of the Norwood Airport, will also attend to question commissioners regarding long-range master planning and facility upgrades.
Grady noted the irony of having both state and federal officials in attendance simultaneously, asserting that future capital investments are directly contingent upon solving the noise issue. Specifically at risk is a direly needed resurfacing of the cracked and rutted secondary east-west runway, which has not received major repairs since its original construction in 1942.
“I think the town is going to cease further development at the airport unless the noise is contained,” Grady warned, reflecting growing opposition from residents and advocacy groups like SNAG.
Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger
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