EDITOR: Can the noise of big jets be mitigated by sound-proofing homes along flight corridors, limiting the hours of flights and lowering the speed of outgoing jets? If you are inclined to believe this, try spending a few days visiting Newport Beach in the outgoing flight corridor of Orange County's John Wayne Airport.
The rules for Orange County include no flights between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. and speeds as low as safely possible until reaching air space over the ocean. The current number of outgoing jets is one every two minutes. The nerve-shattering drone of these big jets is almost constant as the sound of one disappearing is immediately followed by another overhead. The house is sound-proofed, but a quiet leisurely afternoon in the garden or evening barbecue just isn't possible.
While one flight every two minutes isn't likely for Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport, 21 flights in a daily 13-hour window is one every 37 minutes. Without a doubt, the demand for additional flights from those outside the corridor will eventually shorten the time between flights, and those within the corridor will be helpless to un-ring the bell.
BILL HOLLIS
Santa Rosa
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