Noise Abatement & Curfew Ordinance KVNY local VFR procedures
Not for navigation. Verify against the official sources linked below before flight.
noise abatement Regulatory / ordinance — MANDATORY verified 2026-08-27 (43 d ago)
Compliance is required by law — federal regulation or a local ordinance with enforcement authority.
City of LA ordinance: night departure curfew (2200/2300-0700 by stage), 77 dBA arrival/departure cap, night preferential runways (depart 16R, arrive 34L), run-up curfew. Civil penalties apply.
The route
- No departures 2300-0700 except aircraft at or under 74 dBA (AC 36-3) and other listed exemptions; Stage 3 aircraft are additionally restricted from 2200
- No aircraft may arrive or depart whose AC36-3 takeoff noise level equals or exceeds 77 dBA (Stage 3/4 exempt)
- Between 2300 and 0700, weather and traffic permitting, all aircraft shall depart on runway 16R and arrive on runway 34L unless instructed otherwise by ATC
- No maintenance run-ups 1900-0700
When it applies
- Departing 16R — night departures (2300-0700) Ordinance 155727 Section 4: night preferential departure runway
- Arriving 34L — night arrivals (2300-0700) Ordinance 155727 Section 4: night preferential arrival runway
Source text, verbatim
SECTION 2. Curfew. No aircraft may depart from Van Nuys Airport between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. of the following day, except those aircraft listed below: ...(b) Aircraft whose estimated takeoff noise levels, as set forth in Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 36-3A ... are equal to or less than 74 dBA. Section 2.1. Curfew. Except for aircraft exempted by subdivisions (a) through (e) of Section 2, no aircraft may depart from Van Nuys Airport between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to any aircraft certificated as Stage 3 pursuant to 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 36. SECTION 4. Preferential Runway. Between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. of the following day, weather and traffic permitting, all aircraft shall depart on Runway 16R and shall arrive on Runway 34L of Airport unless instructed otherwise by the Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Controller. SECTION 5. Run-ups. No person shall test or run-up an aircraft engine for maintenance purposes between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. of the following day. SEC. 5.2. Aircraft Operations - Maximum Noise Levels. ... (d) On or after January 1, 2016: No aircraft may arrive or depart the Airport whose AC36-3 takeoff noise level equals or exceeds 77 dBA
The text above is the published source wording and is authoritative over any summary on this page.
Sources
- City of Los Angeles — VNY Noise Abatement and Curfew Ordinance compilation (Ordinances 155727, 171889, 173215, 181106) City of Los Angeles / Los Angeles World Airports · retrieved 2026-08-27
- iflyvny.com — VNY Airport Noise Restrictions Los Angeles World Airports · retrieved 2026-08-27