Charlotte Douglas Airport presents Part 150 noise‑compatibility recommendations; council seeks clearer neighborhood maps before Dec. 9 vote

Charlotte Douglas International Airport officials on the city’s committee day presented a draft update to the airport’s Part 150 noise‑compatibility study and asked the council to transmit the package to the Federal Aviation Administration for environmental review.

The airport’s chief executive, Haley Gentry, told council members the study — required under FAA guidance — includes updated noise exposure maps, a suite of noise‑abatement measures and expanded public‑information and mitigation programs. “The Part 150 is the mechanism with which the FAA uses to guide and control planning for noise compatibility in and around airports,” Gentry said in the presentation.

The draft package includes three principal areas of recommendation: clarified run‑up policies (where airlines test engines), new nighttime runway‑use guidance tied to a runway decommissioning and the introduction of divergent departure headings designed to disperse aircraft over a wider geographic area. Staff also reiterated long‑standing land‑use mitigation measures, voluntary sound‑insulation programs and a real‑estate noise‑disclosure overlay the airport has used historically.

Airport staff said the city has already invested about $120 million in local mitigation — including insulation for churches, schools and homes and some residential acquisitions — and that the Part 150 update reflects the arrival of a new runway and a substantial increase in traffic since the last major map update. “We started our first program in 1987 … Charlotte has invested more than $120,000,000 in local community efforts that are related to the Part 150,” Gentry said.

Gentry said airport staff and the airport’s consultants produced simulated future flight‑path headings to illustrate how departures might be dispersed; she emphasized the simulation is illustrative and not an FAA decision. “This drawing was simulated or produced from simulations. It shows all future proposed headings. It is not intended for all of them to be used simultaneously,” she said.

Councilmembers pressed staff for more granular, street‑level maps that residents could use to check whether new headings would affect their neighborhoods. Councilmember Renee Johnson (District 4) said the public needs clear, accessible information: “If there’s anything on the website where the public can find it? … I think we need something on a more granular level so people can really see that the traffic patterns are going to change,” she said.

Airport staff and the city manager urged caution about publishing neighborhood‑level predictions before the FAA performs its environmental review. Jack Christine, the airport’s chief infrastructure officer, told the council the FAA will conduct additional public meetings and formal review if the council transmits the program. “There will be another public process what the FAA will conduct if this measure is approved that will allow the community to comment on these headings,” Christine said.

Council members acknowledged the airport’s economic importance and the need to modernize operations but were split on whether the remaining outreach is adequate before the council votes. Several members urged the airport and staff to broaden outreach to neighborhood groups and to post clearer maps and materials online in advance of the Dec. 9 council packet.

The airport said its plan is to place a council action on Dec. 9 asking the council to recommend the Part 150 package to the FAA. If transmitted, the FAA has up to 180 days to review the submission and then will proceed with an environmental review and additional public participation; airport staff estimated implementation of recommendations could take up to two years after FAA review because changes that alter airspace require federal environmental and operational approvals.

What’s next: Airport staff said they will provide additional materials and follow up with council members who requested more detailed maps and community‑outreach documentation ahead of the Dec. 9 council action.