Living Near the Airport

Centennial Airport is one of the busiest airports in the country, and while the airport contributes more than $2.1 billion in economic impact to the area, the Arapahoe County Public Airport Authority works diligently to balance the needs of the airport with those of the surrounding community.

When buying a new home, there are many things to be considered. Location is one of very high importance. Prospective home buyers should be informed, consumers. Before you consider buying or renting a home near the airport, if you feel you may be sensitive to the noise, we encourage you to talk with your potential new neighbors and spend time near the property, during peak takeoff and landing times. If possible, visit the property at night (during the times you would most likely be sleeping) to better evaluate how the noise may affect you.

Keep in mind that many people who live in the area may not be as sensitive to noise as you, so it's important to experience it first-hand. Centennial Airport staff are happy to visit with you and show you detailed maps of flight patterns that can help you make a more informed decision. The same goes for those individuals considering purchasing property for investment. 

Centennial Airport has a variety of noise monitoring systems and tools, and can also run statistics on overflights to help guide your decision to reside near the airport.

Founded in 1968, Centennial Airport has grown to become one of the world’s busiest general aviation airports, in fact the busiest in 2023 with 362,407 aircraft operations. The record year at Centennial occurred in 1998 with 466,267 aircraft operations. Activity levels at airports are measured by aircraft operations. An operation is defined by the FAA as a takeoff or a landing. A "touch and go" conducted by a training aircraft counts as two operations. 

Centennial Airport is open for business 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and in most weather conditions, with most of the traffic concentrated during the daytime hours. 

In the 1950's before the surrounding area was developed, George M. Wallace began laying the groundwork for what has become one of the nation's most prominent business parks — the Denver Tech Center (DTC). Recognizing the critical role an airport plays in supporting such a thriving economic center, Wallace emphasizes the importance of aviation access to the DTC's success.

On May 12th, 1968, Centennial Airport (formally Arapahoe Public Airport) opened. At the time, Arapahoe Road was only a two-lane dirt road leading to the Airport. Since then, the DTC has grown significantly, and with it, so has residential development and supporting facilities. Centennial Airport continues to work with the surrounding jurisdictions to establish compatible land use surrounding the airport.  

For safety and performance factors, aircraft must arrive and depart into the wind. Centennial Airport’s primary runways are angled with the predominant wind directions of north and south. During typical fair-weather days for the area around Centennial Airport, the wind direction is predominately from the south. This puts the airport in a “South Flow” configuration with aircraft arriving from the north and departing towards the south. During inclement weather days (low clouds, high winds, precipitation, etc.), the wind direction is predominantly from the north and the airport operates in a “North Flow” configuration with aircraft arriving and departing towards the north. Approximately 55 percent of the traffic at Centennial Airport arrives and departs the airport towards the south.  

The areas immediately north and south of the airport experience very high volumes of aircraft traffic. Roughly, 85 percent of Centennial's traffic uses the north/south runways. A number of smaller aircraft use the east/west crosswind runway as a means to keep separation from the larger jet traffic. Areas directly east of the airport are impacted by these operations.  

Except for takeoff and landing maneuvers and emergency operations, the FAA’s general flight rules specify a minimum altitude of 1,000 feet over congested areas and 500 feet over non-congested areas. Within Centennial Airport’s airspace (5 miles surrounding the airport), aircraft may be in a climb or decent phase of flight and will likely be flying lower than 1,000 feet. Helicopters, law enforcement and military aircraft are not required to adhere to these rules. 

In an odd "Catch-22," the Airport Authority is responsible for addressing aircraft noise but has absolutely no control how and where the aircraft fly. Once the wheels of the aircraft leave the pavement, the aircraft is under the control of the Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Control. Safety is the #1 concern and keeping maximum separation between aircraft takes precedence over noise-related concerns.  

Centennial Airport is a public-use airport and due to Grant Assurances required by accepting federal funding, the airport is required to allow government-owned aircraft to operate at the airport and military aircraft are not held to noise standards. Throughout the year and especially in the summer months, Centennial Airport will periodically see a variety of military aircraft operations, typically on training missions. Centennial Airport supports the military and the training requirements needed to protect the nation. 

Aviation is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the United States. The Federal Aviation Administration regulates everything from manufacturing of aircraft to flight rules and air traffic control in and out of airports. Because of this, aircraft travel remains the safest form of travel in the world. While aircraft accidents may be highly publicized, they are extremely rare with fewer than .07 deaths per billion passenger miles for aircraft versus 7.28 deaths per billion passenger miles for cars. (Source: Ian Savage, Northwestern University). The likelihood of an aircraft ground strike is many times smaller than getting hit by lightning or sustaining fatal injuries from a car accident.   

The FAA has produced a series of videos that help the public understand the National Airspace System, the part the FAA plays in addressing and mitigating issues related to noise, and how advancements further innovation and increase efficiencies in aviation, and more. 

The Video Series can be accessed here.

 Zach Gabehart
Planning Specialist - Noise & Environmental 
Phone: 303-218-2919

Lauren Wiarda
Director of Planning & Development
Phone: 303-218-2928