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Brentwood staff ask FAA and BNA to explore higher arrival altitudes after residents report low‑flying jets
Summary
City staff and commissioners discussed resident complaints about increased low‑flying arrivals over Brentwood, explained a temporary runway outage concentrated traffic over some neighborhoods, and said staff asked BNA operations and the FAA to review whether prescribing a higher altitude (suggested 3,500 ft until 10 miles) or other approach adjustments could reduce overflights.
City staff reported that resident complaints about low‑flying aircraft reflect a mix of factors, including a temporary runway outage at Nashville International (BNA) that has concentrated traffic on certain approach paths over Brentwood. Staff member Jay, who reviewed flight‑path plates and live tracking tools, told the commission that when aircraft are on instrument flight rules (IFR) they generally meet altitude checkpoints (for example, about 4,000 feet at 10.7 miles out on certain approaches), but on clear visual days pilots may be cleared for the visual and do not always fly the same waypoints or altitudes.
"On those clear for the visual VFR days, they're not up at 4,000 feet at 10.7 miles out," Jay said, describing how visual approaches can bring aircraft lower over neighborhoods. Because two runways are temporarily out of service, staff said traffic has been concentrated on the remaining runways and that reopening the closed runway later in the year could help redistribute arrivals.
Staff said they contacted Adam Bouchard (BNA operations) and Jeremy Clayton (air traffic control manager) and that those airport officials were meeting with FAA leadership the same day to review whether a prescribed higher altitude could be requested. Staff described a proposal to ask controllers to maintain arriving aircraft at about 3,500 feet until 10 miles out on visual approaches as one mitigation option, but they also cautioned that prescribing additional altitude monitoring increases controller workload and depends on staffing and operational constraints.
Commission members recommended pursuing a collegial, behind‑the‑scenes approach with airport and FAA staff rather than a public confrontation, to avoid generating pushback while exploring operational options. Staff said they would report back after the FAA and airport provide feedback.
Next steps: staff told the commission they are awaiting the airport/FAA response and will follow up if the agency indicates feasible operational changes or requests further local input.
