F-35 Jets Will Impact Area Noise Levels If Housed In Madison

The Pentagon revealed information last week on how a proposal to station new U.S. Air Force fighter jets could effect Madison, and some area residents are skeptical of the plan.

The Air Force released a draft environmental impact statement on Thursday and confirmed what some Madison residents had feared. According to the report, bringing 18 advanced jets to the Dane County Regional Airport could affect noise levels.

Madison beat out several other cities in December 2017 as a possible location for the National Guard’s F-35 Fighter Squadron.

Steve Klafka, who lives just outside of the airport, said he believes the added noise would hurt surrounding neighborhoods.

“If you look at the future of Madison and Dane County, this is kind of the worst thing that you would want because we want people to live in the city and we don’t want to chase them away,” Klafka said. “And I think this is the kind of thing that chases people away from Madison.”

The report also showed there shouldn’t be any impact to land or air quality. City officials said stationing the jets would bring economic benefits.

But Klafka isn’t convinced.

“Madison is the worst site from an environmental standpoint. People who are proponents of it aren’t going to be impacted. They’ll just benefit economically from it,” he said.

According to the report, the Air Force received 455 comments in support of the jets and 115 expressing concern.

The Air Force will announce the jets permanent location in February 2020. If Madison is selected, the jets could land at the Truax base sometime next year.