Suozzi Continues To Push FAA for Solutions

Washington, DC - This week, Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-NY03), joined by Congressman Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY04), New York State Senator Jack Martins, Old Brookville Mayor Bernie Ryba, Brookville Mayor Daniel Serota, East Hills Mayor Michael Koblenz, and Town of North Hempstead Councilmember Ed Scott, wrote a strong letter to Administrator Michael Whitaker and Regional Administrator Marie Kennington-Gardiner of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to consider alternate approach procedures for flights into John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). The current procedures bombard Long Island communities with unsustainable noise loads and must be modified as soon as possible.

The letter follows a meeting last month with FAA and Port Authority officials during which Suozzi, joined by State Sen. Jack Martins, Ed Scott from the Town of North Hempstead, and Mayors Bernie Ryba of Old Brookville, and Daniel Serota of Brookville, discussed a new plan to evaluate "continuous descent final approach" protocols to optimize noise reduction and to “reevaluate a procedure maintaining a minimum 3000' altitude on approach to 22L/R at JFK.”

“Airplane noise continues to impact communities around JFK, specifically those under the typical flight path for an airplane approaching runway 22L/R. Many of these neighborhoods experience almost constant noise pollution from flights overhead, including some constituents who wake up to airplanes as early as 4:30 am and go to sleep with plane noise in the background past midnight,” Suozzi explained.

In the letter, Suozzi called for the FAA to assess the following solutions, which would preclude additional impacts on other communities and could be implemented immediately.

1. Reimplementation of the 2019 agreement to keep aircraft approaching JFK runway 22L/R at or above 3,000 ft until they are within 15 miles of JFK

2. A continuous descent procedure into runway 22L/R starting at 4,000 ft altitude at a distance of 12 nautical miles away from JFK, descending at an angle of 3 degrees.

He also suggested that the FAA consider two additional options to remediate the noise.

1. Runway dispersal to reduce the number of flights utilizing runway 22L/R and disturbing the associated overflight communities

2. Flight path dispersal before aircraft begin final approach into runway 22L/R to reduce the concentration of flights over certain communities

Since taking office in 2017, Suozzi has been navigating the complex maze of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), looking to sort out the jurisdictional issues. He became Co-Chair of the Congressional Quiet Skies Caucus in 2017.

Over the years, Suozzi testified several times before congressional hearings, chaired multiple meetings with relevant federal agencies, and secured significant noise and safety provisions in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.

In 2019, Congressman Tom Suozzi brokered multiple deals with the FAA Eastern Regional Office to alter arrival procedures for JFK runway 22L/R. Under this procedure, aircraft landing on runway 22L/R must remain at or above 3,000 ft until they are within 15 miles of the airport. Air traffic controllers implemented this guidance, and airplane noise impacts decreased. However, the guidance was inexplicably abandoned 18 months later. Airplanes are now flying at altitudes closer to 2,000 ft at distances over 15 miles away from JFK, needlessly disrupting residents’ daily lives once again.

Suozzi concluded his letter to the FAA by urging them “to act quickly and creatively within the parameters of safe airspace operation to mitigate the impacts of airplane noise on the lives of our constituents. Since we were previously able to find a compromise that accomplished both goals, we are hopeful that the FAA will once again work with us to develop a long-term solution to this ongoing issue.”

The full letter to the FAA is attached and can be seen here.