Helicopter complaint system in place with new measures to reduce noise in northern Virginia

New measures to raise altitudes and alter flight paths will reduce helicopter noise in northern Virginia over residential areas.

U.S. Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia announced the new measures with officials from the Department of Defense, the Federal Aviation Administration and Helicopter Association International (HAI). The announcement came after FAA analysis of data from a pilot program to track helicopter noise complaints by residents using a system developed on recommendations from a 2021 General Accounting Office report.

The Northern Virginia jurisdictions will fund the helicopter complaint system going forward.

“Since I took office over eight years ago, helicopter noise has been a constant source of complaints from constituents across Northern Virginia. Here in the nation’s capital with military, medical, commercial and other aviation, aircraft noise will always be with us — but there are things we can do to help reduce the impact on residents,” Beyer said. “The actions we announced today with partners at the federal and local level and our friends at HAI include FAA changes to helicopter flight paths and regional jurisdiction funding to continue the valuable complaint tracking system which helped inform those changes. These actions are a direct response to community input, and I thank the many people whose efforts helped inform the actions we are announcing today, as well as our partners across levels of government who are acting to reduce helicopter noise in Northern Virginia.”

Peter Hearding, deputy assistant administrator for the FAA’s Office of Policy, International Affairs and Environment, said safe operations will be maintained for the residential communities.

“It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we’re all in the same room with the same access to information and working toward the same goal,” Hearding said.

The pilot program provided opportunities to adjust helicopter routes identified by the FAA, according to Chair of the Helicopter Association International Board of Directors Jeff Smith.

“Best practices from this program, along with the data collected from this new initiative, can and will make a noticeable difference in this community. This pilot program is a perfect case study for how government and industry can work together to address issues and deliver tangible results,” Smith said.

City of Alexandria Mayor said the complaint tool “was far more than a nicety to assuage frustrated residents. This tool gathered data that was used by the FAA to make important changes that will mitigate helicopter noise across our region. Our residents weren’t just listened to — they were heard.”

Complaints in Beyer’s 8^th District have been consistent since he took office in 2015.