FAA’s ATL Class B Airspace

Proposal

Prepared by Mike Van Wie

For the Dunwoody City
Council
February 22, 2010
What is Class B Airspace?
• Surrounds the nation's
busiest airports
• Surface to 10,000 feet
MSL; circular diameter of
40 nautical miles
• Pilots must obtain a
clearance from ATC before
entering Class B airspace;
maintain radio contact
with ATC
• Aircraft must be equipped
with an altitude-encoding
transponder
Comparison
Change This To This
 East Operation
December 11, 2009
0600 - 1200
West Operation
December 9,
2009 0600 - 1200
 Things to Consider
• If these proposed changes are to
accommodate the addition of the 5th
runway at ATL Airport, why are such
significant changes being made to
the northern airspace?
 West Operation
December 9, 2009
0600 - 1200
 East Operation
December 11, 2009
0600 - 1200
What does this mean?
• Previously unpopulated airspace above PDK now
populated
• Visual Flight Rules aircraft
– Aircraft compressed into less airspace
– Same number of aircraft operating in less airspace
• Instrument Flight Rules aircraft
– On the ground delays for departing Instrument Flight Rules
aircraft
– Lower initial altitude for departing flights equals more noise
– Earlier descent of inbound aircraft equals more noise
– All factors mean more fuel consumption – more emissions
Environmental Process
• The FAA intends to categorically exclude
(CATEX) the proposal from a thorough
environmental review
– FAA reasoning
• FAA is only changing the airspace to capture aircraft that are
already there–airspace doesn’t make noise, only airplanes do

• Airspace changes at 3,000 ft AGL and above are typically

CATEX
• This reasoning ignores the environmental
consequences, both noise and increased
emissions, at satellite airports like PDK.
 ???Questions???

• Visit www.pdkairport.org
• Class ‘B’ Airspace on home page
– Where/How to submit comments
– Talking points (AAB draft resolution)
– GBAA article – we’re not the only ones
– More technical data
Important Differences
• Existing • Proposed
– 12 mile line – 15 mile line
– Altitude directly above – Altitude directly above
PDK – 8,000 ft PDK – 5,000 ft
– Altitude immediately – Altitude immediately
south of PDK–6,000 ft south of PDK–5,000 ft
– Altitude immediately – Altitude immediately
north of PDK–8,000 ft north of PDK–7,000 ft

Bottom Line – Reduces the airspace

available to all aircraft in and out of
PDK