Enforcing A/FD Remarks

Joe B

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Joe B
A thread on another site set my little mind to wondering about the remarks published in the A/FD and how much teeth they might have. We were discussing noise abatement procedures and the general consensus seemed to be that the A/FD information was "advisory". A pilot would be well-advised to follow the procedures to keep the neighbors happy and the airport open, but if the pilot chose to ignore them there'd be no enforcement repercussions.

Take, as an example, the entry for Easton, MD which I happen to be familiar with. There are no local noise ordinances to deal with. The A/FD reads: "NOISE ABATEMENT; DEP RY 22 AVOID OVERFLIGHT OF TOWN OF EASTON; DEP RY 04 LEFT TURN AT RY END TO PARALLEL HWY 50 UNTIL PAST TRAILER PARK". What is an irate citizen (or pilot community) to do if a pilot insists on launching from either of those runways and blowing over town or the trailer park? Has the FAA ever tried to put teeth into these procedures through any kind of enforcement action - say a 91.113 violation?

Regards,
Joe
 
I think those comments come from sources such as the airport manager. It's the same data as the FAA ATA-100 data which is what sites like AirNav are built on. Sooo...the AFD is not so official so I wouldn't think that voiiating those instructions would be likely to get an enforcement action.

Now, use a left-hand pattern on a right hand runway which is there to "avoid overflight of town" and you are into FAR/AIM violation territory.
 
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Beyond that, in the example provided, the word "Avoid" is used, which is different from "Prohibited." Look at the Cessna Flap debacle for more examples of the difference between avoid and prohibited.
 
The irate citizen can complain to the airport manager who can do just about anything from ripping the offender's lips off next time he sees him to banning the offender from using the airport to initiating legal action in Talbot County (the DA there is also a DPE) for violating a local ordinance (if such is written). Note that the fact that it's a "public use" airport does not preclude barring an individual from that airport for failing to obey airport rules (after appropriate due process, of course).

However, the FAA would not be involved if no FAR is violated, and I don't see an FAR violation here. That said, the airport manager at Easton is a retired Flight Standards Service division manager, very highly respected by the FAA, and a pilot who incurs his wrath for pigheaded flying might find the Baltimore FSDO inspectors watching him very, very closely for any future slip over the regulatory line.
 
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And of course the Baltimore FSDO manager was the one who offered to "Bob Hoover" any pilot that my recently certificated flight instructor friend thought ought not to be flying.
 
Joe,

The very same issue makes my blood boil most every weekend when I am playing golf at Hog Neck. If the wind favors rwy 4, when it was open, no more than 3 out of 10 pilots followed the noise abatement request to turn ande follow route 50, and I bet those 3 were students with an instructor on board. I think it pure selfishness and arrogance on the part of these pilots. I suppose, seeing how they drive their cars, I shouldn't be surprised.

Roger
 
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