As safety restrictions tighten around Reagan National Airport, Arlington’s congressman is pushing to ensure this doesn’t mean more aircraft noise over residential areas.
Following last month’s fatal midair collision between a military helicopter and a commercial jet, the Federal Aviation Administration has announced new guardrails on flights around the airport.
The FAA has stopped almost all helicopter traffic over the Potomac River near DCA, pending the results of an investigation into the crash that killed 67 people. The agency also has “begun reviewing other airports with high volumes of mixed helicopter and airplane traffic nearby,” a spokesperson told ARLnow.
It remains to be seen where those flights will go instead — and whether any changes might mean more helicopters over places like Arlington.
The FAA did not directly respond to emailed questions about the locations of new flight patterns. The agency referred ARLnow to the Department of Defense for questions on military operations, but that department declined to provide more information.
A spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Don Beyer — who has long championed Arlington residents’ calls for less aircraft noise — told ARLnow that Beyer supports more safety guardrails but is working to keep helicopter flights away from where people live.
“For those mission critical flights supporting federal government operations, he supports moving training flights over the Potomac River well outside of the National Capital Region where airplanes fly at a significantly higher altitude,” spokesperson Noah Simon said.
He added that Beyer supports the Army reevaluating the location of training missions like the one involved in last month’s crash, “and relocating any non-critical training flight missions that do not require proximity to the National Capital Region out of the region entirely.”
Given the number of civilian and military flights coming in and out of the D.C. area, noise from both helicopters and airplanes is a longstanding issue in the region.
In recent years, the federal government has responded with initiatives like a noise complaint system for helicopters, new DCA flight paths that more closely follow the Potomac River, and adjustments to helicopters’ routes and altitudes.
Advocacy efforts have played out at the local as well as the national level. The Arlington County Board has weighed in on noise-related issues numerous times in recent years — opposing the addition of more flights at National Airport and submitting feedback on FAA noise policies.
Beyer in particular has advocated for fewer flights over residential neighborhoods, limits to the times of flights and reductions to the number of flights that can happen both during the day and at night, Simon said. Just last week, the congressman signed onto a bill that would require the FAA to provide funding for noise mitigation.
Shortly after last month’s crash, Beyer also co-signed a letter to the Department of Defense calling for permanent changes to the routes of helicopter training flights in the D.C. area.
“As he stated in the January 31 letter, the risks of situating helicopter trainings beside the busiest runway in the country – Runway 1/19 at National – are significant,” Simon said. “He will continue to work with NTSB, FAA and DOD to find a sustainable long term approach that prioritizes safety and local residents. “
