SFO Fly Quiet Program 2.0 Noise Reduction Evaluation Framework – August 2026

Date: August 5, 2026 – AICA presented the Noise Evaluation Framework and FQP Recommendations to the SFO Airport/Community Roundtable.

1. SFO Fly Quiet Program 2.0: SFO Roundtable Technical Working Group Recommendation

Three framework questions

• Who controls the action?
• Is it likely to reduce noise meaningfully? 
• Who benefits?

Those questions helped distinguish voluntary pilot and airline actions appropriate for the Fly Quiet Program from FAA or air traffic control-managed noise-abatement procedures, SFO rules and regulations, and items requiring further technical evaluation.

The process also produced a broader outcome: it placed existing NAPs and SFO requirements within the framework and identified potential Roundtable work plan items. This gives the Roundtable a clearer public roadmap for future work, including issues that may not fit within a voluntary airline-recognition program but still matter to affected communities.

Key Points

• The process mapped which of the Roundtable’s 21 member jurisdictions could benefit from each item across three categories: recommended Fly Quiet Program elements, existing NAPs and SFO rules and regulations, and proposed future work plan items.
• The framework helped distinguish which noise-reduction opportunities belong in the Fly Quiet Program, which should be tracked as existing procedures or airport requirements, and which require further technical evaluation.
• Seven elements were recommended or conditionally recommended for SFO Fly Quiet Program 2.0.
• The framework separates pilot and airline actions from procedures controlled principally by the FAA or air traffic control.
• The arrivals recommendation uses actual noise measurements along Peninsula arrival procedures rather than relying only on aircraft certification data collected near the runway.
• For noise-based comparisons, the framework uses a minimum 3 dB difference as the threshold for a meaningful distinction.

Additional Roundtable Materials

SFO Airport/Community Roundtable agenda packet, August 5, 2026 – includes the two-page project overview for the Fly Quiet Program 2.0 Noise Reduction Evaluation Framework. See pages 42-43.