Fog may have intensified copter noise,
contributing to Atsugi complaints
By David Allen, Stars and
Stripes
Heavy fog may have intensified the noise from helicopters returning to Atsugi Naval Air
Facility, Japan, on Tuesday night, launching a spate of complaints.
More than 70 residents of Chigasaki City, near the air base, complained to city police
and fire stations and the Kanagawa prefectural police after two U.S. Navy helicopters
returned from search-and-rescue training over Sagami Bay.
The SH-60B Seahawk helicopters, assigned to Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron Light
51, flew over Chigasaki City about 10:30 p.m. after conducting the night exercise.
"It was the first time we’ve ever received complaints about helicopter
noise," said Yoshihiro Shimizu, host nation relations officer for NAF Atsugi.
"It was a really foggy night and the air was quite dense. We think it amplified the
noise."
Although NAF Atsugi has a policy of flying only on weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.,
night flights are allowed if an extension is granted by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense
Force, which controls the flightline, Shimizu said.
"If we have to fly beyond that restricted time, we have to ask permission,"
he said. "[Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron Light 51] made the request and was
granted an extension."
A local newspaper reported that the helicopters "circled repeatedly" at a low
altitude over the entry to the Sagami River, which lies between the cities of Chigasaki
and Hiratsuka in Kanagawa Prefecture, about 11 miles south-southwest of the air base.
"It might have sounded like that because of the heavy fog," Shimizu said.
"But they were conducting regular practice over the sea, far from the cities."
The only time the helicopters flew over Chigasaki was on their return to the base, he
said. Local residents have long complained of jet noise from NAF Atsugi and a civil suit
is active in a Japanese court.
"But this is the first time anyone has ever complained about helicopter
noise," Shimizu said.
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