Members of the Hanscom Field Advisory Commission (HFAC) met on October 15th to discuss matters of concern at the airfield and to hear Massport updates on monthly flight operations, current projects, and development plans.
Discussions included the sharp rise in numbers of small aircraft flight operations during recent months; jet noise; tardy Massport noise complaint response letters; peculiarities in the recordings of a Massport noise monitor in Bedford; hypothetical vs true destination in local flight plan filings; monthly flight operations; and Massport planned developments and projects (including a recent full-scale emergency and security rehearsal at the airfield).
Other airfield topics of concern brought up at the October HFAC meeting are covered in these separate stories – Click “Does Massport Aircraft Noise Model for Hanscom Field Omit Crucial Information?” and “Ponderation of Transponders” to read them.
38.1% Increase in September Flight Operations for Small Planes
“It seems like an extraordinary increase,” said Commission member and Bedford Selectman Mike Rosenberg about a dramatic increase in flight operations for small aircraft during September (up 38.1%), August (up 26.0%), and July (up 25.4%), compared to the same period last year. Amber Goodspeed, Massport Airport Administrative Manager for Hanscom, countered, “There was an extraordinary decrease the year before,” and added, “So I think it kind of is evening itself out to be more normal.”
When Rosenberg pointed out that the decrease in operations last year was due to the loss of a flight school, Goodspeed acknowledged the closing of the school, but suggested, “People who live in the area and want to fly in the area aren’t going to go to another airport because their flight school closed down. There’s another one here.” Thomas Hirch, Commission member and Hanscom Pilots Association representative, noted that a lot of the flight volume had simply moved over to the other school.
Broken Light Fixtures and Tardy Air Noise Complaint Responses from Massport
Commission Chairman Christopher Eliot of Lincoln read aloud a letter from a Lincoln resident, the widow of a former HFAC member who had also been a pilot. She described a recent frightening incident where a large low-flying jet caused her house to shake so hard that light fixtures broke. She expressed concern that such low flying air traffic from Hanscom Field could negatively impact the quality of life and damage a home’s value. Noting that she had not received any response from Massport regarding her air noise complaint, she asked whether regulations on low-flying air traffic are still being enforced.
Goodspeed explained although Massport has not stopped collecting air noise reports, it has a backlog of complaints from the summer, and has fallen behind on response letters. She offered to add the Lincoln resident’s letter to the other noise reports awaiting answer. A Bedford resident also noted she had not received response letters from Massport about noise reports for quite some time. Goodspeed and Mark Wimmer, the new Hanscom Field Airport Data Specialist, assured her they are working on the overdue response letters.
Note: Massport’s monthly noise report shows 214 air noise disturbance reports were filed in September 2019, compared to the 70 reports filed during the same month in 2018.
Bedford Noise Monitor Mystery Partially Solved?
The troubled Site 34 air noise monitor on DeAngelo Drive in Bedford abruptly returned to normal readings for September – only 0.5 decibel (dB) higher than last year. It had been averaging over 25 dB higher than the normal reading of around 60 dB during June, July and August. Goodspeed observed that the “bird spike” (meant to repel avian visitors) on the monitor appeared to be damaged, which may account for some of this summer’s extremely high readings. She has put in a work order for the monitor to be inspected and repaired if necessary. Goodspeed does not associate the higher air noise readings with the documented increase in flight operations this summer.
Interestingly, despite the 38% increase in small aircraft flight operations and 5% increase in jet activity in September, recorded noise levels fell at four of the six Massport noise monitors surrounding the airfield, and only rose 0.5 dB at the other two monitors.
Filed Flight Plan Destinations Don’t Always Match True Destinations
When David McCoy, a resident of Ayer, asked why the code AYE* sometimes displays as the destination of local aircraft on flight-tracking applications, Hirsch explained that sometimes a hypothetical flight plan destination is filed by local student pilots as a training exercise in planning a flight path. If the supervisor does not cancel the hypothetical flight plan destination, then flight tracking applications may still link it to the school aircraft. In those cases, “You can’t rely on the destination being a true destination.” Asked if that practice could skew Massport data collection on flight operations, Goodspeed and Hirsch both agreed that there is no effect since only arrivals and departures are added to the Hanscom database, not destinations.
*AYE is the International Air Transport Association (IATA) code for the former Moore Army Airfield between Ayer and Groton; the airfield has been closed since 1995.
Hanscom Field Monthly Flight Operations
Massport reported 12,801 total flight operations in September 2019, an increase of 22.6% over the 10,445 flight operations in September 2018.
Daytime Air Traffic (7 am to 11 pm)
- Local small aircraft touch and go practice up 32.8% (3504 to 4652)
- Single piston engine aircraft flights up 45.6% (2472 to 3598)
- Twin piston engine aircraft flights up 4.4% (297 to 310)
- Military up 328.6% (14 to 60) Note: military flights routinely average less than 1% of the annual total flight operations at Hanscom Field.
- Jets up 4.8% (2471 to 2589)
- Helicopters unchanged (815)
- Turboprops down 10.9% (872 to 777)
Nighttime Air Traffic (11 pm to 7 am)
- General flight operations up 13.4% (186 to 211; 36 exemptions granted*)
*Flights exempt from nighttime fees include medflights, FAA, civil air patrol, and military flights, as well as any flights delayed by weather, mechanical problems or air traffic control issues. The fees are imposed by Massport to discourage optional nighttime flight operations which are likely to cause sleep disturbances for residents of surrounding communities. Fees are collected and then paid into Massport’s General Fund.
Massport Projects and Developments
- Massport hosted a full-scale emergency and security exercise at Hanscom Field on October 9th, partnering with the FAA; FBI; Massachusetts State Police; Lahey Hospital, Armstrong Ambulance; and officials from the towns of Bedford, Lexington, Concord, and Lincoln. Forty students of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, as well as staff of tenants at Hanscom Field, volunteered as victims during the emergency exercise.
- Several electric vehicle charging stations will be added to the Civil Air Terminal parking lot.
- Signature Flight Services has signed a lease with Massport which allows demolition and replacement of its present building, as well as performing extensive repairs to and/or reconfiguring Hangars 1, 2, 3 and 13.
- Massport planned to meet with Bedford, Lexington, Lincoln, and Concord Conservation Commissions in October regarding its new Vegetation Management Plan. It has already notified abutters who will be affected by tree, brush, and other vegetation removal or control operations.
- The Request for Proposals (RFP) process for Hangar 12 has been closed without reaching an agreement with the highest bidder. If Massport receives no other offers from developers in the next few months, a new RFP will likely be issued. Note: Hangar 12 is adjacent to the new Boston MedFlight facility at Hangar 12A.
- No updates are available on the corporate hangar and T-Hangars planned for the North Airfield in Bedford or the Ross Rectrix corporate hangar planned for the Pine Hill area in Concord.
New HFAC Website
To join the HFAC notification list for meetings, please visit the new HFAC website hosted by the Town of Lincoln and subscribe. You may also go directly to the site (Click here: https://www.lincolntown.org/AgendaCenter/Hanscom-Field-Airport-Commission-58) and tap the “Notify Me” button in the HFAC Agenda Center banner. The site requires registration to receive agendas and updates.
Next Meeting November 19, 2019
HFAC will meet again on Tuesday, November 19th, at 7 pm in Room 308 of the Civil Air Terminal, 200 Hanscom Drive, Bedford. Free parking is available across from the Terminal. The meeting agenda includes a Citizen Comment period for the general public to ask questions and present matters of concern to the Commission. Residents of all communities impacted by Massport and its tenants’ operations at Hanscom Field are always welcome to attend.
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