South Fulton, GA Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

South Fulton's noise ordinance (Title 6, Chapter 3) sets limits on ground-based sources such as music, parties, vehicles, landscaping equipment, construction, and animals, but it contains no provision regulating the noise of aircraft in flight. This reflects the long-settled rule that aircraft noise is a federal matter. Under federal law, the United States has exclusive sovereignty over the navigable airspace, and the Federal Aviation Administration regulates aircraft operations and noise (49 U.S.C. Sec. 40103; operating noise limits at 14 CFR Part 91, Subpart I). In City of Burbank v. Lockheed Air Terminal, Inc., 411 U.S. 624 (1973), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the comprehensive federal scheme preempted a city's aircraft-curfew ordinance, reasoning that a patchwork of local curfews would undermine national airspace management. The Airport Noise and Capacity Act of 1990 (49 U.S.C. Secs. 47521-47534) further centralized authority by requiring FAA approval of most new local airport noise and access restrictions. As a result, a young city like South Fulton cannot lawfully set its own in-flight aircraft-noise limits; residents with aircraft-noise concerns typically raise them with the FAA or the operating airport rather than through the city noise code.