Commercial air traffic at Burlington International Airport has taken a nosedive, but across the runway, the Vermont Air National Guard continues to send its new F-35s roaring into the skies daily.
The juxtaposition of the recent plunge in civilian air traffic with an increase in the number of F-35s operating at the base has made their presence more pronounced of late. The first two next-generation jets arrived last September, but the Guard now boasts a fleet of 15.
“People are noticing them a little bit more often because all other flights are significantly lower right now,” said Nic Longo, deputy director of aviation at the airport.
The increase in people at home when the planes streak overhead could also be contributing to the heightened awareness of the new aircraft, which are louder than the F-16s they replaced.
The number of commercial flights at the airport in March were half what they were at the same time last year, Longo said. Private aircraft flights are also down sharply as people follow the increasingly strict stay-at-home guidelines meant to contain the coronavirus outbreak in the state.
But it’s business as usual for the F-35s operating across the tarmac. Regular morning and afternoon training flights are continuing at the base as pilots ramp up operations of the nation’s newest fighter.
In response to questions about the jets’ flight patterns in recent weeks, the Guard issued a press release — but did not provide answers Friday to several follow-up questions.
Since the first two F-35 Lightning II jets arrived last year, 13 more have been added to the flight line for a total of 15 in operation. Twenty are expected to be in service by this summer, according to the Air National Guard.
The Green Mountain Boys aren’t going to let a little thing like a pandemic disrupt their flight operations.
“We have a responsibility and obligation to meet our federal readiness requirement and stay on our conversion timeline,” Col. David Shevchik, commander of the 158th Fighter Wing, said in the press release Friday. “We take our state and federal missions very seriously and are taking every precaution to maintain the health of our force during this unprecedented time.”
The Guard has about 50 soldiers on active duty to help the governor respond to the coronavirus emergency, and will continue its training flights and other drills — with appropriate social distancing — to ensure that they’re prepared if more troops are needed, Brig. Gen. Greg Knight, the state’s adjutant general, said in the release.
Meanwhile, the number of passengers taking commercial flights from BTV keeps sinking. The first week of March saw passenger totals down 14 percent over the previous year. The next three weeks saw drops of 33 percent, 60 percent and 90 percent, Longo said.
“Some of our flights, this week and last week, had zero people on them,” he said.
He said the airport is expecting that the federal CARES Act stimulus bill will help support airport staffing and ensure that flights continue, regardless of passenger numbers.
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Without a doubt they have been flying more often and lower. It is very loud and very disturbing. And earlier this week it sent my normally calm 16 month old nephew into a terror when he was at my house. The sound is jarring and painful to my ears and I do not welcome it at all into my neighborhood. I wish the mayor and his family lived in this neighborhood (Burlington’s ONE) which isn’t even considered in the flight path. It would be hard to imagine that he’d still welcome them. Do I sound angry? Well that’s because I am. Tired of dishonest, foolish men in power (VTANG included) making decisions that the rest of us have to suffer the consequences of.
Great to hear the sound of freedom while the world is falling apart. Thank you to our military people for continuing to work hard while the majority of us are forced to stay home. What a great time to train while most of the airport is in a major slow down.
F35s don’t protect against a pandemic. Shut ’em down and send the money to the taxpayers. They need it more than anybody.
The loud low roar of American Imperialism, and stupidity. It cannot escape anyone that these money-sucking boondoggles are all we now hear while suffering through a pandemic with an under-funded and ill-prepared healthcare system…
Have they been flying lower and more frequently the last week? I worked from home the last 2 years from the new north end and it was never as loud as its been the last week or so.
Also where do we see that flight path being described?
I for one am glad the F35’s are patrolling Lake Champlain for Champ and the local parks for gatherings of more than 5.
War is the country’s first business priority.
Imagine if instead of the F-35 mission the VTANG mission were a medical one. They could be collecting and distributing much-needed equipment and supplies and actually doing some good at this time. There would also be more jobs for the VTANG! Instead they are blasting the skies, wasting millions/billions of tax dollars that are needed for this crisis. Every time I hear those planes these days it makes my blood boil. I cannot adequately express my anger and rage at the politicians who made the F-35 boondoggle happen and continue to support it and the systems that allowed it.
Heaven forbid, but what if in addition to fighting the virus, an actual war broke out. Would you want these planes and well trained personnel to protect us?
The flight this morning literally brought my two children to tears. This needs to stop.
There is talk of a trillion dollar infrastructure stimulus bill being negotiated in Congress. How about our Congressional delegation, with Senator Leahy’s seniority, puts together a win-win for Vermont? Set aside some money to build VTANG their own dedicated and independent base, in a more rural part of Vermont, such as Franklin County or the Connecticut River Valley. Or for a new airport altogether, in Franklin County, with its own dedicated exit off the highway?
There is no reason VTANG cannot be properly honored; and the people of Winooski, Burlington, South Burlington, Williston, etc., the most densely populated area in the entire state, simultaneously honored.
Current situation with the F35s is not feasible in the long term and is going to be a drag economically on the area. I have heard from UVM students, anecdotally, who came to Burlington with such high hopes and now have zero interest in staying here long-term after graduation because of the jet noise. Like, why would I want to live in Winooski with this?
If Chicago could build O’Hare when it became apparent Midway was bumping up directly against neighborhoods; if Denver could do it more recently, so can Burlington. Or, at the least, get VTANG their own state of the art facility.
Anyone that is complaining about this, doesn’t know what is going on out there.
This country is on it’s knees right now, do you think our enemies have not noticed this?
We haven’t been this vulnerable since WW2.
Why don’t you go read some Military sites and inform yourself about what is actually going on out there right now.
If you fully understood, you’d be relieved to hear them.
I’m not against the F-35s, but wondering how the country can be on its knees from something the Orange-Spray-On-Tan-Idiot called “a hoax”? From something he said was minor and would completely disappear with warm weather? From something he said his administration had “totally under control”? If the country’s on its knees it’s because The Idiot spent critical weeks in denial, listening to that well known medical expert Jared Kushner and telling the American people not to worry, instead of listening to all of the public health officials inside and outside of government and preparing the country for this crisis.
I am retired and so am home most of the time anyway, and this is not just more “noticeable” because of stay-at-home.
We live near Centennial ball field, and our neighborhood, which used to be in the sound zone for F-16s, magically was removed from sound impact zone map for F-35s (probably because the hospital is across the street, and that would have screwed the pooch on basing them here).
I can say with certainty that the F-35s have been from the start far more loud – the quality of sound is deeper. louder, and makes windows and wood vibrate.
Moreover, the past week has been even louder. Are they using their afterburners for some bullshit reason? We were promised they would NOT use afterburners unless there was some emergency. I hope it’s not to just give the pilots a thrill to keep their spirits up, because it is deeply disturbing thousands of us.
And I would like send my heart out, and apologize deeply to the people of Winooski — it’s bad where I am, it must be hell on earth where you are.
Is there any way the F35s could SHOOT the pandemic, like with a missile or something? Maybe a nuke? It’s gonna take big, bold ideas like this to save us, people! Who’s with me?!
On March 31, Eglin AFB in Florida adopted a posture that allowed only “mission-essential” personnel on the base. Which meant that the 100 Vermont Air Guard members that had been training there since January were kicked out and sent back home to VT.
Edwards AFB in California has also shut down normal operations. These AFB actions were taken to combat the coronavirus pandemic and to help slow the spread of the disease
But the Vermont Air Guard? Nope. It ignores the examples of the Air Force Bases and decides that its F35 training is more important that its mission to protect Vermonters and its own service members.
The Vermont Guard’s membership is 4,000, yet sent a mere “50 soldiers on active duty to help the governor respond to the coronavirus emergency, and will continue its training flights and other drills…”
WTF is wrong with this group and the Governor that they force our citizens to endure these unnecessary and dangerous flights routines, when even the front-line AFBs with full F35 squadrons have suspended their training operations? When such a minuscule amount of trained and able personnel are assigned to fight the ACTUAL emergency in our state, instead of the imaginary one for which people have been sold a shoddy F35 bill of goods?
Thought ” Bolsheviks Bernie” and Miro, Leahy, Welsh, were pro-environmentalists. Let’s call em out, let’s hear it the “opinions/excuses”
I think it was incredibly kind of Seven Days to post this article and give the anti-F35 crowd something to do. It’s terrific that they can feel like they’re contributing, while not mucking up the comments under every other article. Thank you, Kevin. It’s small, thoughtful gestures like these that help strengthen and heal communities.
Anyone who supports them F35 should be forced to personally write a check to pay for it. We real Americans do not support this asinine boondoggle. Time for the right wing trash to put up or shut up.
Many dislikes – people sure like those F-35s – I wonder if they too are in the flight zone? If not, how can you judge what people should put up with?
No one will bomb us, the planes don’t Work yet, and they are astoundingly expensive. Let’s use the money for protecting the citizens. Do I think there’ll be a war for which we need these things?
No, sorry.
on March 17 2020 one hundred and thirty U.S. House Of Representative members jointly petitioned the House Armed Services Committee asking to once again appropriate taxpayer dollars to purchase 98 more F35 nuclear bomber jets which will cost a minimum of $78 million dollars each – increasingly in the twenty first century the federal government has chosen to invest massive amounts of money into preparing for and waging endless phoney wars for endless military/industrial corporation profits while neglecting public health, education, environmental degradation, and other domestic issues – we are now seeing the effects firsthand when the american government misallocates federal funds to support the corrupt military/industrial war machine