Organizers in the Seattle suburb of Burien are prepared to take legal action against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over a recent flight path adjustment.
KOMO News reported residents of Burien and nearby Seahurst are growing increasingly frustrated with the FAA's decision to allow Q400 turboprop aircraft taking off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to fly directly overhead.
The flights, primarily operated by Alaska Airlines, have been allowed to make an immediate left turn on northerly departures since July 2016 with the goal being to speed up departures at Sea-Tac.
Dr. Dennis Hansen told KOMO the planes sound like "a fleet of greyhound buses" and said they can be heard every 15 minutes. But according to the FAA, the flights in question only account for 2 percent of the annual departures from Sea-Tac.
While the FAA has made itself available to the neighborhood group organized to combat the issue, neighborhood leaders say it hasn't done enough.
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"They have been very vague and not forthcoming with answers," Quiet Skies Coalition president Larry Cripe told KOMO News. "Currently we are underway to take legal action to stop what's been done."
The group intends to file a lawsuit against the FAA and the Port of Seattle, which operates Sea-Tac Airport.
In a statement to KOMO, the FAA indicated that it's "aware of concerns by the City of Burien with a very limited, but increasing number of smaller turboprop aircraft over a portion of Burien" and said it plans to work to "identify other possible ways to mitigate this issue during the limited time they happen."
According to KOMO News, the Burien City Council is weighing the possibility of authorizing as much as $100,000 to battle the FAA in court.
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