I really hope something happens - I live in the CanCo Lofts and these helicopters fly so low sometimes that they're actually lower than our roof - which is only 6 floors off the ground. I've also driven on the Pulaski and been buzzed by them a number of times... Sometimes they're so low that they literally look like they might land on the highway. It's like the pilots are playing a game to see how low they can fly.

Out of flight?
Federal agency promises solution to noisy aircraft flying overhead, residents wonder when they?ll see relief

by E. Assata Wright
Reporter staff writer- Feb 24, 2013

Jersey City residents are guardedly optimistic that a recent decision by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will put an end to low flying helicopters that have been a nuisance and safety concern since last summer.

For months, residents in Jersey City Heights, Journal Square, and Greenville have been complaining about helicopters from a Kearny-based heliport that fly just above rooftops and trees in these communities. Noise from these aircraft has been a concern, as has the fear that in the event of an accident people in these residential areas could be seriously injured.

?These helicopters fly so low that you can actually see the numbers written on them,? said Heights resident David Sitler, who has started documenting the flights that pass over his home. Other residents in the Journal Square community have reported seeing helicopters flying so low that they can see certain details on passengers? clothing.

Sitler and other residents said they have seen helicopters flying as early as 6 a.m. and as late as 11:30 p.m. and even after midnight.

Last week, however, came word that the FAA will specifically instruct helicopter pilots to fly at their maximum allowed altitude of 1,000 feet whenever air traffic at Newark Liberty International Airport permits.

?Safety precautions??

Ward C City Councilwoman Nidia Lopez, who represents the Journal Square area and a portion of the Heights, has seen these low flying helicopters herself and has called them ?scary and unacceptable.?

She said the problem began after the South Kearny-based HHI Heliport was approved and opened for business in 2011.

?The heliport in South Kearny obtained permission from Newark Liberty International Airport to fly at the maximum height of 1,000 feet, presumably in an effort to reduce noise to the communities over which they fly,? said Lopez.

The 1,000-foot maximum altitude also allows these helicopters to avoid airspace occupied by larger aircraft servicing Newark Liberty International Airport.

?You?d think that if there?s a maximum altitude at which they can fly there would also be a minimum altitude at which they can fly,? said Sitler. ?But that doesn?t seem to be the case.?

Last summer, Lopez began receiving letters and e-mails of complaint from constituents who said the helicopters had become a quality of life problem in their neighborhoods.

?What, if any, safety precautions are being observed?? asked Heights resident Tricia O?Cone who reached out to Lopez for help last year. ?The pilots fly precariously low, it?s not impossible to think that there could be severe safety issues.?

Like Sitler, O?Cone said she has seen flights starting as early as 6:30 a.m. and continuing ?well into the evening.?

Lopez reached out to U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and various state elected leaders, none of whom, she said, responded to her concerns.

Solution in sight?

Residents in Bayonne, who have also been affected, also complained to their local and state representatives. They, in turn, took these complaints to U.S. Rep. Albio Sires (NJ-8th Dist.), a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, which has some jurisdiction over the FAA.

Sires may have extracted a promise from the agency to force the helicopters to fly closer to their maximum allowed altitude of 1,000 feet.

In a letter sent to Sires? office from Carmine Gallo, an FAA administrator for this region, the agency vowed to have air traffic controllers at Newark Liberty International Airport ?authorize higher altitudes for helicopters when air traffic permits.?

Jersey City residents are wondering, however, when these new guidelines will be implemented.

Sitler said that as late as Feb. 21 he was still seeing low-flying helicopters over his home ? and he worries the problem will get worse when the warm weather arrives.

?It was worse last summer than it has been this winter, which makes me think we could be in for the same thing this spring and summer,? he said. ?And we?ve heard about these new restrictions, but we really don?t know what this will mean for Jersey City yet. I was home for large portion of the day today and I can tell you there were a bunch of these helicopters that flew right over my house, just like they always do. So, I think we?re still waiting to see if there are really going to be any changes.?

http://hudsonreporter.com/view/full_s ... ce=lead_story_left_column

What is the likelihood of them relocating the airport ? Zero
What is the likelihood of aircrafts being put at risk in high winds to accommodate this issue ? Zero

What about better sound-proofing your home ?

If you live in those 'cheap-ass- built' 'luxury' apartments, then there is a lot you can do.

Quote:

Whenever there is a strong crosswind to Runway 22 (the one parallel to the turnpike), EWR uses R29. The aircraft bank pretty sharply right over the Turnpike extension to align themselves with R29. I take the Turnpike every day from work, and am always amazed at these maneuvers, particularly in high winds. I use EWR a lot, but thankfully my flight never had to use that approach.

Yea! It's been a nice quiet aircraft noise day. I am thankful it is over. I know this is wishful thinking, but it would be nice if there were a website to see any announcements as to why there might be a noise issue such as temporary use of an alternate runway.

I got a report from SH and it sounds like it is all quiet on the Western front. It is back to normal as of Saturday afternoon no jet noise. I guess they are back to using the repaired runways.
(now if they could just do something about those low flying helicopters)

Some interesting stuff on this thread. I never really checked out an over head map of the runways before. I found this link that has one. Now I can see the position of the 29 runway and how short it is. I also now understand on some days when it is in use exiting off of the Turnpike could be fun. Did you ever time your exit to an incoming jet? It seems like they fly a few feet above your car?

http://www.globalair.com/airport/apt.runway.aspx?aptcode=EWR

seriously?
We live by an airport... c'est la vie.
Legally, because the airport was here first you have to suck it up.

Quote:

planespotters

Quote:

r29 is short and kinda risky for the heavies.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15498793/

Please. You/we live under the flight path of the nation's first international airport in the 2nd busiest aviation hub on this planet (don't ask me about the others).
Consider yourself lucky that R29 is not always so active for the the big boys.

If you're really concerned and want to dog them check out the tracker at http://aviationdevelopmentcouncil.org/F_Tracking.html

They're using a different runway I believe the East - West one due to repairs on the main runway that is normally used (the one that parallels the NJ turnpike. Because of that the planes have to swing over Jersey City to head west to land. Hopefully as the above poster said repairs will be finished by tomorrow so they can get back to their normal flight paths.

This is the alternate glidepath, more to the east, over Society Hill, and turning west. I noticed it happen only occassionally before (thought it must be due to the winds), but for the last two weeks or so it was the only glidepath they used. Runway repairs is the most logical explanation.

I've noticed the noise for about 2 weeks now.
The planes used to fly a lil higher and further out like by Newark but not seems to be like right above WestSide Ave.

Hi? I have friends who live in Society Hill they said the low flying jet noise is unbearable. The SH Association contacted Newark Airport about the noise. They said they were doing runway repairs and the work should be finished by the end of the weekend. (Sunday?)


I was down by National Warehouse today wow. I couldn't hear myself think.


I will pass the numbers onto my friends..in case the noise doesn't stop on Sunday night.

If you have noticed the drastic and unacceptable aircraft noise in the past week on the West side and over Lincoln Park, PLEASE file a complaint with the Port Authority using the below information. I am doing this on a daily basis. I don't know if this will result in any explainantion or change. Thanks!


Aircraft Noise Complaints
Click Port Authority Aircraft Noise Complaints to electronically file a noise complaint
OR
Call the Airport Noise Complaint Line: 1-800-225-1071