JACKSON HEIGHTS — The skies over Queens may be a little quieter after Delta Air Lines pulled its noisiest planes from rotation at LaGuardia Airport, officials said.
The company announced Thursday they'll stop flying their MD-88 planes — which are among the loudest — on a regular basis to and from the domestic airport, replacing them with the quieter and more fuel-efficient Airbus A320, Boeing 737s and MD-90 aircrafts.
The change began Thursday, officials said.
The move comes after years of complaints from residents affected by plane noise, particularly in neighborhoods such as Jackson Heights — which has seen an 80 percent increase in plane traffic over the past eight years.
Delta's vice president for New York, Henry Kuykendall, said they opted to make the change after "considering our responsibility to the communities where we live and serve."
“Delta flights on quieter, more efficient and larger aircraft are good for the community and will also support NextGen initiatives around more fuel-efficient GPS routes in New York airspace, the most congested in the world," Kuykendall said in a press release.
Elected officials praised the change — while also hoping officials will do more to improve plane noise.
“Delta’s move will have a positive impact on airplane noise over our borough and it will make a difference to those who reside near the airport," Rep. Grace Meng said in a statement. "I look forward to building on this switch to quieter aircrafts, and working with airline officials to further mitigate airplane noise.”
