BUR Flight Paths - Final Environmental Assessment Released

FAA RELEASED RECORD OF DECISION (ROD) TO FINALIZE THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT ON BUR DEPARTURE PATHS

On Tuesday, August 12, the FAA released the Errata Sheet and Record of Decision (ROD) on the departure flight paths for the Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) to finalize the Draft Environmental Assessment (EA).

The FAA selected the No Action Alternative.

Bottom line: DEPARTURE PATHS WILL STAY THE SAME.

On the one hand, this is good news because the proposed "Alternative A" under consideration would worsen existing BUR impacts. Thanks to you, and to the tireless efforts of our elected officials and our small group of volunteers, we have prevented implementation of "Alternative A" multiple times. The ROD states that the "Alternative A" procedure that we have been fighting since 2018 is UNSAFE.

On the other hand, this is bad news because the ROD will not provide relief. Most notably though, the ROD did not study the "southern shift" of the departure paths that occurred in late 2016/early 2017, which the FAA itself admitted in 2019.

This is despite the fact that the FAA's conceded "southern shift" was the entire basis for the EA. The FAA also ignored hundreds of pages of public comments that noted how the FAA had used a false baseline in the EA from 2022, years after the FAA had already moved the flight paths.

We are disappointed by the outcome. We share your frustration.

BUT THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER!

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WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

We are in the process of reviewing the ROD and consulting with our lawyer, who has won similar cases against the FAA.

As anticipated, we expect to bring a legal challenge using donated funds. This has been the plan all along as we waited for this moment where under court rules we could file a lawsuit. In 2019, we thought it would take at most 6 months to complete the EA. Instead, it was 6 years.

This is standard FAA practice and it works well. Long delays cause organizations like ours to incur additional costs and exhaust the community. Many have unsubscribed, moved away, or otherwise given up ... which is exactly what the FAA wants.

In the meantime, BUR's Citizen's Advisory Committee will be meeting this fall to discuss possible avenues of relief, which still remain possible.

Thank you for your support. We will continue to keep you updated.