FAA study finds that most Americans are 'highly annoyed' by aircraft noise

An FAA poll of 10,000 Americans who live near airports found that most were “highly annoyed” by aircraft noise overheard, though the planes themselves have become significantly quieter through the years.

In a report published last month, the Neighborhood Environmental Survey (NES), conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), found that nearly two-thirds of people polled were "highly annoyed" by aviation noise — even more than road traffic or noise from their neighbors. Compared with prior studies, the national curve showed "substantially more people highly annoyed for a given Day-Night Average Sound Level (DNL) aircraft noise exposure level," researchers said. The most recent study of human annoyance on aircraft noise by the U.S. government – conducted in 1992 – found that just 12.3% were irritated by the same DNL of 65 dB.