Joe Randazzo: F-35 even worse than we thought
Commentary by Joe Randazzo, published by VTDigger, Jun 5, 2019
At 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.”
