Metropolitan Airports Commission supports compromise in flight pattern plan

1. Listen Compromise in flight pattern plan

The Federal Aviation Administration's plan to safely accommodate increased air traffic and make it more efficient involves concentrating flight routes into a series of super air highways. The Metropolitan Airports Commission voted Monday to support partially implementing a proposed FAA change in flight patterns at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport that would concentrate the flight paths of planes flying in and out of the airport. The plan is only being partially implemented due to opposition from residents that would be affected by increased airplane noise.

MAC commissioners voted for a compromise they said benefits all sides. However, FAA officials said partially implementing the plan has some potential problems.

Guests on the Daily Circuit today are Jim Higgins, associate professor at the University of North Dakota's Department of Aviation in Grand Forks, and DFL State Representative Jim Davnie, who lives in south Minneapolis and represents areas where airport noise is a big problem.