Chesapeake, VA Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

City Code Sec. 26-141 lists 20 categories of noise exempt from the entire noise article, chapter 26, article V. Item (8) states plainly: "Noises generated by all aircraft under the jurisdiction [of] the Federal Aviation Administration" (as printed in the code). curfew of Sec. 26-124 nor the numeric decibel caps of Sec. 26-130 reach aircraft overflights, engine run-ups, or airport ground operations regulated by the FAA, because federal aviation law preempts local noise control of flight operations. The exemption sits alongside other federally or state-controlled activities the city also declines to regulate, including locomotive and railroad equipment noise (item 7) and noises from any area permitted by the state's mining and energy regulator (referenced separately in the penalty section).

Sec. 26-121 frames the article's purpose as reducing noise "in cooperation with federal, state and local governments," language consistent with deferring to FAA jurisdiction rather than attempting to regulate it locally. Residents near Chesapeake Municipal Airport or under regional Hampton Roads flight paths who want to address aircraft noise have no avenue under this local ordinance; any recourse runs through FAA noise-complaint channels or airport-specific voluntary programs, not city code enforcement, citizen affidavits under Sec. 26-127, or the civil/criminal penalties of Sec. 26-131, none of which apply to an exempt source.