Environmentalists sue over Grand Canyon flights

Luna I. Shyr

Friday, Jan. 10, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

New flight restrictions aimed at reducing noise over the Grand Canyon have prompted a second lawsuit within a week, this time from environmentalists who say the plan does too little.

Seven environmental groups sued the Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday, claiming the agency must do more to preserve tranquility at the natural wonder in Arizona.

The suit came on the heels of a lawsuit filed last week by a group of air-tour companies that said the plan is too harsh. Both lawsuits were filed in the U.S. Circuit of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

While the new FAA regulations nearly double the amount of flight-free space above the Grand Canyon, they fail to limit the number of flights and keep planes flying over key trails, the environmentalists said.

"The problem with the final rule is it doesn't move any of the major air-tour routes very much," said Rob Smith, the Sierra Club's Southwest representative in Phoenix. "They can still fly over backcountry trails and overlooks where people go to get peace and quiet."

Aircraft noise travels up to 16 miles in the Grand Canyon, Smith said.

The new flight restrictions, introduced Dec. 31 and set to take effect May 1, are aimed at reducing noise in the canyon, a subject of intense debate for a decade.

The plan imposes morning and evening curfews on flights and makes nearly 80 percent of the canyon's airspace off limits to aircraft. It bans any increase in the number of aircraft allowed to operate but doesn't limit the number of flights those aircraft can make.

A coalition of 13 air tour operators asked the appellate court Friday to block the new flight restrictions. The group claims the restrictions are unneeded and could drive some smaller companies out of business.

The FAA refused to comment on the latest lawsuit. Fraser Jones, a spokesman in Washington, said the agency knew about the environmentalists' suit but had yet to see it.