Nearly 30,000 formal complaints have been filed in Sonoma County since jets started routing over western Sonoma County, and residents from Occidental to Sebastopol say daily roars are blowing up quiet mornings and weekend afternoons. Now local leaders are turning up the pressure on federal regulators for near-term relief, even as a longer, more technical study of the new flight paths slowly gets underway.
Noise reports have gone from background buzz to full-on avalanche. The airport’s own monthly summary shows 3,979 noise complaints in January 2026 alone. According to STS Good Neighbor, jets and commercial departures accounted for most of those complaints, with the bulk coming from West Sonoma communities.
How bad is the surge
The January spike is part of a much bigger climb. County records compiled by local reporters show Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport logged about 29,895 noise complaints in 2025 and 15,530 complaints in the first quarter of 2026, up from roughly 1,135 complaints in 2023. In a few short years, a minor neighborhood nuisance has turned into one of the county’s loudest quality-of-life flashpoints.
What changed in the skies
Residents and county documents largely trace the jump to a change in departure procedures. In early 2024, the FAA began using a new published southbound departure route that neighbors call RREHD1, and public comments filed with the county describe nearly every southbound flight being funneled into a tight corridor over West County.
Those public comments and the airport’s approach and departure review lay out the competing procedures in play, including the older "Charlie Eight" departure that had spread traffic more widely. They also explain how the shapes of those published departures determine where jets turn and how quickly they climb away from neighborhoods. The county’s comment files and technical review materials are posted by Sonoma County Airport, including a consultant review of existing procedures by Cignus Consulting.
Airport manager Jon Stout has told reporters the new published departure pattern concentrates traffic and lowers the altitude at which jets cross West County, leaving more neighborhoods directly under the roar. He also said airport staff are now spending thousands of hours each year fielding and processing complaints, with an estimated 1,800 staff hours annually devoted just to handling the noise deluge. The Press Democrat reported those figures and Stout’s assessment.
Officials push for fixes
County supervisors and their west-county representatives say they have asked the FAA for immediate, temporary changes while the county studies longer-term alternatives. The Aviation Commission’s calendar shows a June 18 meeting where county staff plan to present recommendations and possible next steps, a public forum officials say will help shape what the county formally asks the FAA to do next. Meeting dates and agendas are posted on the commission section of the Sonoma County Airport website.
Legal and political push from the community
Grassroots groups and a local petition calling for a halt to the new departure route are demanding an environmental review under federal and state rules, arguing the FAA should have conducted a broader public analysis before concentrating flights. The petition and organizing under the banner of "Fair Flight Paths" document residents’ push for a temporary return to the older procedure until noise and environmental impacts are fully studied, and county comment files show many neighbors invoking CEQA and broader environmental concerns. The petition is posted on Change.org, alongside county comment responses that offer additional context.
What to expect next
In the short term, control of any quick relief sits firmly with the FAA. The county and airport can study alternatives and formally request changes, but the authority over published flight tracks rests with federal air traffic officials. County leaders say the ongoing study and public outreach are meant to build a data-backed case to pressure the FAA for changes, yet they also acknowledge that revising procedures or launching full environmental reviews can take many months to years.
For residents tracking the fight from backyards and kitchen tables across West County, the next big public milestone is the Aviation Commission meeting on June 18, where county staff are expected to map out their recommended steps and preview how Sonoma County plans to make its case to Washington.
