Editor’s note: This commentary is by Joe Randazzo, who is a 38-year resident of South Burlington, a former member of the Development Review Board, and a U.S. Navy vet who served aboard the U.S.S. Essex aircraft carrier.
[A]t 8:05 a.m. on Friday, May 31, we had a preview of what is in store for South Burlington when the F-35s will be permanently based at our airport. Our home is not in the most sensitive area. Although we are near the University Mall, across the street from the high school, the noise level was still intolerable. The F-35s are much louder than the F-16s and pose a great threat to all our citizens’ health and safety. Here are some new facts I have just learned from NAVAIR, that our military has not shared with us.
In all the sound studies of decibel levels, they have never taken into account the added noise of almost 3 dB when two planes are flying in formation. They always fly in tandem, and it nearly doubles the sound levels. Also, according to NAVAIR, the 150 dB generated during takeoff on an aircraft carrier is louder than any ear protection currently available for naval personnel. “We are creating a hearing loss certainty, not just a risk.”
The NAVAIR study differs from the Air Force study in one very important matrix. The noise measured is not just in decibel units (dBs) but also in watts-per-square-meter. “The F-35A watts-per-square-meter is two times greater than those generated by the F/A-18 E/F (Super Hornet). You can’t use a single dB number to measure noise to fully quantify the acoustic pressure levels generated by an engine, or to compare one engine to another.”
This fact was graphically demonstrated to us on the morning of May 31, when the F35s took off from our airport. In addition to the increased dB levels, there was also a much louder low-frequency rumbling. So the noise has expanded from the normal jet frequencies of the F-16 to much lower cycles-per-second that will penetrate even a closed environment such as the inside of our homes. New windows or doors will not protect us from these frequencies.
Again, according to the NAVAIR study: “Noise levels below 500 Hz are normally not recorded by either dosimeters or medical audiograms. (Low frequency noise was not part of the Air Force study.) Those who have stood near an F-22 or F-35 at high power levels report uncomfortable sensations and believe their internal organs are moving.”
The NAVAIR study continues: “Critical organs of the body have harmonic resonances ranging from a few Hz to 400Hz. For these reasons, greater bio-medical research into the adverse effects of low frequency, air-propagated sound is needed.”
According to the map just released, 2,640 homes in the airport vicinity will be potentially unlivable, nearly triple the number of units affected by the F-16. Why didn’t the Air Force provide these statistics in the beginning? Why doesn’t our congressional delegation step in to protect the people of South Burlington and Winooski?
The F-35 will do more than destroy the peace and quiet of two entire cities. They now pose a direct threat to the health and safety of our citizens. They will devastate the property values of our homes. Our children will not be able to attend school without having their hearing damaged. We love our community, but are now faced with the difficult decision of whether or not we wish to remain here and live with the noise of a combat zone. Our leaders have made a pact with the devil and have ruined South Burlington.
