John Wayne Airport (JWA) recently changed the flight path of departing planes.
Under this new plan negotiated with the Orange County community – called the STREL – planes are now supposed to fly down the middle of the Back Bay, over Balboa Island and out to sea seven miles before banking north, south or east. The airlines are ignoring this newly designated flight path and using a little known loophole to cut the corners on a large percentage of their daily flights. We recently videotaped countless planes deviating from the designated flight path to cut over Jamboree between Fashion Island and the Back Bay View Park (corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Jamboree) and fly over Corona del Mar (CDM), Eastside Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. By cutting the corner rather than flying down the Bay and out over the ocean, the airlines are saving money in fuel and time costs. Our safety, serenity and property values are being sacrificed so the airlines can increase their profits. What’s worse is that our JWA flight controllers are letting the airlines get away with it.
The air traffic controllers are abusing a loophole that gives them the ability to grant airlines permission to deviate from the designated flight path. They are granting deviations not to protect public safety but to lighten their workload. Once JWA air traffic controllers grant permission to deviate from the approved flight path, and in effect, fly over our homes, they can release those planes from JWA’s responsibility to San Diego air traffic control. The end result is a diversion of airplane noise from the Back Bay to our neighborhoods, the destruction of our peaceful outdoors, and a lowering of our property values.
We are not the only people affected by JWA’s and the airlines’ willful disregard for the new flight plan. It affects all residents of Orange County. Lower property values means a reduction in revenues available for critical community services and supports like our schools and public safety. That’s wrong.
Join us today in demanding that JWA and the airlines honor the new flight plan agreement and stop the flight path deviations!
What can you do? Send a letter to the airport and city voicing your concern; call the JWA Noise Abatement Office (949) 252-5185 and PLEASE SIGN OUR PETITION! Every call to the Noise Abatement Office is logged and the petition will protect our community.