A rapidly growing air transport observed in Poland in the last decade, promotes not only convenient and fast travel of increasingly larger groups of society at large distances, thus contributes to the economic development of the regions, but also poses a risk of exposure of the population living in areas around airports to excessive noise. To counteract this aerodrome management and air navigation services under the supervision of the national aviation authority implement various kinds of improvements and operational changes , such as avoiding approaches to land above the most densely populated areas, prohibition on the use of reverse thrust just after landing, reducing the number of operations at night, etc.
However, the most effective way to reduce this nuisance is to reduce noise at source, i.e. silencing engines. Aircraft manufacturers incur huge costs connected with scientific research and development in this field, which results in significant technical advances in engine designs. It forces them to enter into fierce competition, but also international aircraft noise standards established by ICAO, whose requirements are systematically tightened.
These matters are among others in the scope of activities of the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) in which participates an expert of the Civil Aviation Authority. The result of this work is Volume I of Annex 16 ("Aircraft Noise") to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, signed in Chicago on 7 December 1944. This document defines the permissible levels of noise of aircraft and helicopters, depending on their maximum take-off weight and measurement procedures.
In the European Union there the use of aircraft which meet the requirements of Chapter 3 of this Annex, introduced in 1977 is allowed. Older (and louder) aircraft, listed in Chapter 2 of the Annex can perform flights only in certain rare cases. Currently manufactured aircraft must meet the requirements more strict Chapter 4 which has been in force since 2006.
Recently the work on the implementation of new, more stringent acoustic standards for jet -powered airplanes and heavy propeller-driven airplanes has been completed. The requirements will come into force in 2017 as Chapter 14. Lighter jets and propeller-driven airplanes with a maximum take-off weight in the range from 8.618 kg to 55.000 kg, will be subject to this chapter since 2021. The scope of these restrictions is significant, because the standards will be tightened with respect to Chapter 4 of 7EPNdB including all three measurement points and of 17 EPNdB comparing to Chapter 3.