Loveland, CO Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Aircraft noise at Loveland is governed by overlapping federal and local frameworks. Federally, the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 (49 U.S.C. 41713(b)(1)) preempts state and local laws 'related to a price, route, or service of an air carrier,' and the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 (49 U.S.C. 40101 et seq.) gives the FAA exclusive authority over the navigable airspace, including flight altitudes, routes, and operating procedures (City of Burbank v. Lockheed Air Terminal, 411 U.S. 624 (1973), held that federal law impliedly preempts local curfews on aircraft operations). Airport-proprietor noise rules (curfews, weight limits, fleet-mix limits) at federally funded airports are further restricted by the Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990 (ANCA, 49 U.S.C. 47521-47534), which requires FAA approval for new Stage 3 restrictions. Locally, the City of Loveland recognized this preemption by enacting LMC 7.32.060(B), which expressly exempts 'all sound emanating from any aircraft' from Chapter 7.32 entirely. Northern Colorado Regional Airport (KFNL/FNL, formerly Fort Collins-Loveland Municipal Airport) is jointly owned 50/50 by the Cities of Loveland and Fort Collins and located 9 nautical miles southeast of Fort Collins and northeast of Loveland in Larimer County. It operates a remote air-traffic-control tower (the Colorado Remote Tower Project), runway 6/24 (8,500 ft), and a smaller runway 15/33; it serves general aviation, business jets, flight training (Aims Community College aviation), agricultural aviation, and seasonal scheduled service. As airport co-proprietor, Loveland (with Fort Collins) can publish voluntary noise-abatement procedures (preferred runway use, recommended departure tracks avoiding residential areas, recommended quiet hours) but cannot legally enforce them on pilots - violations are addressed by the FAA, not by local police. Loveland-area residents disturbed by KFNL aircraft activity can file complaints with the airport's noise hotline (route through airport administration at flynoco.com) or with the FAA via the Aircraft Noise Complaint System; the city's noise ordinance does not apply. Sky-diving operations (Mile-Hi Skydiving has historically operated at the airport), helicopter tour flights, and air-medical flights to the area's hospitals (UCHealth, Banner) are similarly governed by federal aviation rules.