Regulation for Noise Abatement Around Small Airfields in Germany - A Challenge for the General Aviation Aircraft Industry?

Abstract

Increasing noise complaints are recorded from residential areas surrounding small airfields in Germany. As a consequence the German Ministry of Transport, Building and Housing set in force noise related traffic regulations for General Aviation (GA) aircraft, which were meant as an impetus for the aircraft operators to realize available noise reduction technologies. These regulations (German "Landeplatz-Lärmschutzverordnung") impose operational restrictions - at leisure times in particular - for aircraft without a noise certificate and for aircraft with noise levels which do not fall 4 to 7 dB below their relevant (Chapters 6 to 10) noise certification level. Exceptions are granted for cross-country flights. The philosophy of this regulation is to reduce noise originating from the most annoying circuit flights of training aircraft but not hamper GA-aircraft business operations. Seeking for a non restricted operation, therefore each individual aircraft type needs a noise certificate to establish its compliance with the required noise limits. This turns out as a hardship for older aircraft, which only comply with former - less stringent - noise limits, or which even do not have a noise certificate at all (if they got their airworthiness certificate before 1971). Such aircraft need an adequate retrofitting with low-noise propellers or engine exhaust mufflers. The respective technology has been developed in recent years, coming up with multiblade propellers, geared engines and innovative muffler designs. Based on the knowledge of respective noise reduction potentials the adequate technical solution (and the ensuing cost/benefit relation) has to be determined for each one aircraft type individually.