Burlington, NC Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Section 22-68 sets property-line noise limits: sixty decibels overnight, 10:00 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., and seventy decibels during the day and evening, 6:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., using the ANSI "A"-weighted decibel standard defined in § 22-67. But subsection (d) exempts nine categories of sound from those limits entirely, and item (5) specifically covers "sounds emanating from the normal operations of properly equipped aircraft (not including model aircraft)." That places flights over or near Burlington, including activity connected to the Alamance-Burlington Airport Authority, outside the reach of the city's amplified and mechanical noise limits, so long as the aircraft is properly equipped and being operated normally.

Model aircraft, by contrast, are not covered by this exemption and remain subject to the general noise-nuisance provisions of § 22-67 if their operation is unreasonably loud or disturbing under the reasonable person standard the article uses. The other exemptions listed alongside aircraft in § 22-68(d), such as emergency vehicles, safety signals, permitted temporary events, school PA systems and religious chimes, show the exemption list is a defined, limited set rather than a general carve-out for any loud outdoor activity.