An environmental court judge has denied a request that Burlington obtain a land-use permit to host a fleet of F-35 fighter jets, a decision F-35 opponents are likely to appeal.
The proposed changes at the Vermont Air National Guard base that would be made to accommodate the jets do not warrant an Act 250 permit, Judge Thomas Walsh said in his decision.
F-35 opponents say they will likely appeal the lower court’s ruling to the Vermont Supreme Court because the Air Force estimated noise levels around the airport will increase with the new jets. Opponents are also concerned about public safety. They worry that the pilots will not have sufficient flight experience with the new jets to ensure there will not be an accident.
“If you can wait until you’ve got the crash risk down low and you can come up with a way and show that the noise level is lower … than the F-16, then bring it here,” said James Leas, an appellate in the case and opponent of the F-35.
The U.S. Air Force last year selected the Vermont Guard base as one of the locations for 18 F-35 fighter jets. The new planes will replace Vermont’s F-16 fleet, beginning in 2020. F-35 opponents in December 2012 requested that Burlington, which owns the airport, obtain an Act 250 permit in order to require the Air Force to mitigate the noise impacts of the new jet.
Issues such as noise and safety are governed by Federal Aviation Administration regulations and therefore are exempt from state permit review, according to Vermont Natural Resources Board Chair Ron Shems. The board oversees Act 250 permit applications.
The Greater Burlington Industrial Corp. (GBIC), a nonprofit economic development group that backs the F-35 beddown in Burlington, lauded the court’s decision.
“This decision is one more step in maintaining a very important economic entity in Vermont,” said Frank Cioffi, president of GBIC, in a statement.
Opponents of the basing decision say the jets’ arrival will expand the noise envelope around Burlington International Airport to include more than 2,000 homes. Those households would be exposed to a 65 decibel day-night-average sound level.
The Guard said this month the new planes will be quieter than the current F-16s because pilots will change the flight and take-off patterns for the F-35. Opponents of the new fighter jets say the Guard made the same promise when the F-16s arrived at the airport.
Guard officials said infrastructure build-outs to accommodate the F-35 will be “minimal.” The largest anticipated construction will be flight simulation facilities used for training, Guard officials say.
Leas said F-35 pilots should have at least 1 million flight hours of experience before flying the jets in the populated greater Burlington area.
The Guard said qualified F-16 pilots will likely go to Luke Air Force Base in Arizona to train on the new jets in 2017.
The Guard this month released a working environmental impact mitigation plan aimed at reducing noise and other environmental effects after the jets arrive. Critics say the plan does not adequately offset the noise impact of the F-35 on residents.
