Scranton, PA Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Chapter 317's prohibited-acts list groups aircraft with other engines in § 317-7A(5), Vehicle, motorboat or aircraft repairs and testing: 'Repairing, rebuilding or testing any motor vehicle, motorcycle, motorboat or aircraft in such a manner as to cause a noise disturbance across a residential real property boundary' is declared a noise disturbance and a violation of the chapter. The rule reaches ground-based repair and engine-testing work, which the city can regulate as a local nuisance, not the operation or overflight of aircraft in the air, which is preempted by federal aviation law and the FAA's exclusive control of navigable airspace.

A 'noise disturbance' under § 317-2B is any sound that disrupts a person's repose, health or peace, unreasonably annoys a person of normal sensitivity, endangers property, or exceeds the § 317-8 sound level table; testimony from two or more residents in separate homes who agree on the timing of the disturbance is prima facie evidence of a violation under § 317-7C. Because the section names aircraft specifically alongside motor vehicles, motorcycles and motorboats, it covers a small private airstrip, a hangar, or a mechanic doing engine work near Scranton residential property, not the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport's air traffic, which state and federal law keep outside city reach.