Click here to see an exhibit depicting distances from Midway.
Click here to see a consumer guide written by the Federal Communications Commission regarding the interference of radio, television, telephone signals.
On February 7, 1996, Chicago created the Midway Noise Compatibility Commission (MNCC) as a policy-making group to oversee noise management efforts around Chicago Midway International Airport (Midway); the MNCC met for the first time on June 13, 1996. The MNCC participates in the planning of noise mitigation projects to be implemented in the Midway area; oversees an effective and impartial noise monitoring system; and advises the City of Chicago on Midway-related noise issues. The MNCC is comprised of representatives of communities located within the Midway area. This means that decisions about how noise reduction money is spent will reflect the concerns of the communities that are most affected by aircraft noise.
The MNCC makes recommendations to the City of Chicago regarding noise reduction programs at Midway such as the Fly Quiet Program, the Sound Insulation Programs, and the Airport Noise Management System (ANMS). The MNCC has hosted more than 80 public meetings regarding aircraft noise around Midway since its inception in 1996. At these meetings the MNCC discusses progress with the sound insulation programs and reviews the quarterly ANMS report. The ANMS report consists of runway use reports, airline and aircraft fleet mix reports, aircraft noise reports, and aircraft noise complaints.
Since 1996, the MNCC’s membership has grown to include Chicago wards surrounding Midway, suburban municipalities, and Cook County as follows:
City of Chicago Appointees:
Board of Commissioners of Cook County
Suburban Mayors
The CDA and the ONCC disseminate a variety of information related to aircraft noise issues through its community outreach programs. Some of that information is aboard the CDA Community Outreach Vehicle (COV).
The COV is available to travel to community events and schools throughout the year. There are video presentations and computer demonstrations aboard the COV that explain, among other things, the Airport Noise Management System and noise footprints of different types of aircraft. The COV is also used as a learning tool. It is available to travel to schools located within the City of Chicago and surrounding suburbs to discuss noise management and career possibilities in the aviation industry.
The COV is powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) and is equipped with an ADA-compliant automatic hydraulic wheelchair lift.
Anyone interested in having the COV visit a village hall, community event, or school should contact the Chicago Department of Aviation at 773-686-3563.
In order to enhance safety, improve efficiency of aircraft operations, and accommodate future air travel needs in the Chicago Midway airspace, in early 2013 the FAA proposed implementation of new flight procedures, using advanced technologies that are in line with the FAA's NextGen goals. The Next Generation Air Transportation System, commonly known as NextGen, is the FAA's plan to modernize the National Airspace System by replacing ground-based radar systems with space-based satellite systems to allow aircraft to fly routes that are more direct. The FAA prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to assess the proposed Midway air traffic procedural changes due to their potential to cause significant environmental impacts. The new flights procedures were environmentally approved in June 2013. The EA, its appendices, and the FAA's decision document (called a Finding of No Significant Impact/Record of Decision (FONSI/ROD)) are available below.
Final Midway Air Traffic Procedural Changes EA, May 24, 2013 (188 pages, 39 MB) Final Midway Air Traffic Procedural Changes EA Appendices, May 24, 2013 (434 pages, 32 MB)Final Midway Air Traffic Procedural Changes FONSI/ROD, June 26, 2013 (34 pages, 9.9 MB)
In 1992 the CDA submitted a Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study, which the FAA approved in 1993. A Part 150 study is an airport's balanced, cost-effective, and FAA-approved plan to reduce current aircraft noise impacts over noise-sensitive land uses, and where practical, to limit the potential for future noise impacts. In early 2013 the CDA completed an update to its Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study. The entire Part 150 Study Update with appendices and the FAA's decision document (called a Record of Approval (ROA)) is available below.
Final Midway Part 150 Study Update, June 2013 (679 pages, 95 MB)