Protect Clairemont from Excessive Aircraft Noise & Lead Pollution at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport

To: The Honorable Mayor of the City of San Diego, San Diego City Council, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport Administration

We, the undersigned residents of Clairemont—the largest neighborhood in San Diego—and surrounding communities, call for immediate action to address the severe impacts of intensive flight training at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport (MYF).

The INCESSANT stream of low-flying training aircraft performing endless touch-and-go maneuvers has robbed our community of peace, quiet, and safety. Flight operations have surged dramatically:

2021–2022: +0.39%
2022–2023: +4.76%
2023–2024: +19.88% (321,830 → 385,806 operations)
This near-20% increase in a single year has turned Clairemont into an unrelenting training circuit.

The noise disrupts sleep, work, school, and outdoor life. More alarmingly, piston-engine training aircraft burn leaded 100LL fuel, releasing toxic lead directly over our homes and schools. Even low-level lead exposure permanently harms children’s brain development, IQ, and behavior.

Thousands of local children are exposed daily at schools and parks directly beneath these flight paths, including:

James Madison High School
Lafayette Elementary School
Sequoia Elementary School
Clairemont Canyons Academy
Innovation Middle School
Reformation Lutheran School
Olive Grove Park and numerous childcare centers

As we approach the 8th anniversary on December 9, 2025, of the tragic 2017 small plane crash from Montgomery-Gibbs that landed in Lafayette Elementary School's playground—killing two passengers, injuring the pilot and another, and igniting a nearby home—we are reminded of the very real safety risks these low-altitude operations also pose to our community. This preventable danger, combined with ongoing noise and lead pollution, demands urgent change.

This is a preventable public health and environmental justice crisis.

We respectfully petition for the following immediate actions:

1. Restrict flight training to reasonable hours (e.g., 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM), banning early-morning, evening, and nighttime operations over residential areas and schools.
2. Limit repetitive touch-and-go and pattern training to reduce continuous overflights.
3. Require all training circuit patterns to remain east of Interstate 805, turning over commercial/industrial zones instead of homes.
4. Strengthen and strictly enforce a mandatory “Fly Quiet” program with consequences for violations.
5. Release transparent monthly public reports on training activity, noise complaints, and flights over school zones.
6. Relocate high-volume repetitive flight training to less densely populated regional airports better suited for such operations.

Clairemont families deserve clean air, quiet skies, and protection from preventable harm. Other cities have acted decisively to shield residents from similar impacts. San Diego must do the same.
We urge you to act now to safeguard the health, well-being, and future of our children and community. 

Sincerely, The Undersigned Residents of Clairemont and Surrounding Communities of San Diego, California