On 2006-04-12, Skylune wrote:
What about the long-term residents living next to (or in the vicinity of)
a small airport that grows into a noise spewing monster? Was not the
resident there before the expansion?

General aviation is in decline. If that happens it's because the
AIRLINES moved in. Noise spewing monster airports are generally not
caused by GA.

And, how on earth are nonpilots supposed to know where flight paths are
located? These can extend many miles from the airport. Should people
have to become experts in right and left traffic patterns, be able to read
sectionals, etc. when purchasing a home?

All they have to do is spend a little time in the neighbourhood and TALK
to the neighbours. I know it's totally unheard of to actually talk to
your neighbours these days - but really, when you're plunking down maybe
100 grand or more on a house you ought to at least meet the neighbours
and ask them what the neighbourhood is like. "Oh, I see there's an
airport on the local map - how noisy is it?". If you see an airport on
the map, spend some time in the street and find out whether the sounds
are annoying. But people don't even do this minor bit of easy research.
It doesn't take being an expert in aviation to ask your potential
neighbours what the traffic is like at the airport you spotted on the
map.

Of course, most people don't even bother buying a map when purchasing a
house to find out what's around. They wouldn't dream of buying a house
without doing a structural survey or checking for liens or other
problems - but when it comes to doing a minor bit of legwork to check
that the rest of the neighbourhood is acceptable to them, they don't
bother.

--
Dylan Smith, Port St Mary, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute: http://oolite-linux.berlios.de
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