U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper and U.S. Rep. Jason Crow asked the the Federal Aviation Administration in a letter Wednesday to address noise complaints at the Centennial Airport.

In May of 2021, two small planes crashed mid-air over Cherry Creek State Park while attempting to land at the Centennial Airport in Arapahoe County. Though no one was injured in the crash, the FAA responded by shifting the air traffic pattern for the area, causing increased traffic over nearby residential areas. 

The FAA did not consult the airport or the community before making the change, Crow, Bennet and Hickenlooper said in the letter. 

“Residents have relayed concerns related to this traffic pattern change, including those from noise pollution and potential lead pollution due to the leaded fuel used by single-engine planes,” the letter said. “Other concerns include an increase in flight school flights, specifically noise attributable to repeated touch-and-go operations, and anticipated growth in flights out of this airport.” 

Affected residents have met with the airport and its Community Noise Roundtable for months to discuss the issue, the letter said, adding they also contacted local FAA representatives by phone, email, letter and a recent virtual meeting, but received no official response.

In their letter, Crow, Bennet and Hickenlooper call on the FAA to do more to engage with the community on their concerns, including attending their monthly meetings in person. 

“A fundamental piece of this engagement should be a good faith discussion on revisiting changes made by the FAA to the air traffic pattern,” the letter said. “We also encourage the FAA to commit to a written response to the community’s concerns.” 

The Centennial Airport is one of the 25 busiest airports in the country, averaging 1,000 takeoffs and landings per day, according to the FAA. It is located on the south end of the Denver metro area near the Denver Tech Center business district.