Noisy airplanes

[Noise Pollution]

Thankfully the airspace above the Grand Canyon is some of the most restricted in the nation. Goals for aircraft overflight management listed in the GCNP'S policy paper include:
1. Substantially restore natural quiet as a natural resource.
The goal is to address “the impairment of visitor enjoyment associated with flights over such units of the National Park System.”
The goal of those of us hoping to more fully enjoy our wilderness areas with all 5 senses is to reduce and eliminate the horrible sound of endless giant lawnmower sounding little planes ripping through the sky. The Grand Canyon is a start, and similar policy must be extended over all wilderness areas and major parks in the country. Unless it's an IFR day, I can hear little planes well over 50% of the time I'm taking a hike in a park that is quite a few kilometers from any airport. At what point would you consider plane noise excessive? What if an average of 2 planes are audible for 100% of the time? At what point do we recognize the right of people to be free from excessive noise pollution in wilderness areas? Listening to props and engines 10% of the time I'm in the woods I can deal with; up it to 60 or 70% and I'm frustrated to the point that I'm looking for ways to decrease it.

 

[Jim Logajan]

If you are sincere and not trolling, and if you live anywhere within reasonable driving distance of Creswell, then I'd be happy to give you a free ride in an airplane so you can get an idea what motivates us to fly these planes. You'd learn why you are wasting your energies posting. Yes, we'd all love quieter aircraft, but you may as well be asking the able-bodied to amputate their legs to save the grass from being crushed under foot. Ain't going to happen.

There are some nice back-country grass strips in the Cascades that are pleasant to fly to (though some will close at the end of this month and not reopen till spring.) Maybe a flight along the coast or over Crater Lake sounds interesting? You can send me a private message on this forum if any of that interests you.

 

[Jim Logajan]

Thanks much for the offer Jim, but my wife said you would probably either A: throw me out of your plane over Crater Lake,

Tell your wife I would never pollute a beautiful pristine lake like that!

or B: Take off without me while I'm taking a leak at one of those remote grass strips in the Cascades.

That would be downright ungentlemanly. Besides, I'd only abandon you at airports that had ground transportation available.

In reality, I think she's even more afraid that I would come home alive and wanting to buy an airplane.

Shucks, even I don't own an airplane. She's invited along too, by the way. One of you can sit in back to subdue me in case you think I'm about to throw the right-seater out the plane. I don't think you realize how hard it is to throw two people out of a small plane and try to fly it!

Sincerely, I appreciate your generosity, but I can't let myself be co-opted.

You will be assimilated! Seriously though, the offer stands. I'd be flying the noisy airplane anyway - no point letting that noise disturbance go entirely to waste.

I wish I had some good photos of countryside seen from the air, but not much.