Van Nuys Airport noise

Updated 23 October 2026

Modeled estimates for general information only — not measurements, not a guarantee, and not for legal, medical or real-estate decisions.

Van Nuys Airport (VNY) is a public-use airport in the San Fernando Valley, run by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA). Quiet LA draws its official noise contours, adds an estimate derived from them to the 24 h value, and replays recorded flights of one sample day. It does not count individual flights or model helicopters.

See Van Nuys Airport on the map

What the map shows near Van Nuys Airport

In the 24 h view the map adds an aircraft estimate to the road and train noise. It starts from the official contours: for Van Nuys, the 65 and 70 CNEL lines in LAWA’s California Airport Noise Standards quarterly report for the first quarter of 2026. Quiet LA stretches those lines outward to 55 CNEL, using the spacing of the airport’s own lines, and interpolates between them. Nothing is added outside 55 CNEL.

Day, Evening and Night never include aircraft. Switch Aircraft on and off in the layers panel and compare the 24 h colors with and without it, which is the quickest way to see how much of a place’s 24 h value is the airport estimate.

Runways and flight tracks

The runway data the map uses lists two runways at Van Nuys, almost parallel and running nearly north to south: 16R/34L, about 8,001 feet long, and 16L/34R, about 4,013 feet (OurAirports, public domain). With the Aircraft switch on, the map replays recorded flights of one sample day below 15,000 feet as moving lights, with a line only where a flight is likely to be heard on the ground. It is an illustrative replay, sped up. No aircraft is identified, and one day does not show how often flights pass over a street.

See How it’s made for the method and Sources & methods for every report the contours come from.

What the map does not show

• Individual flights, departures or overflights, and how many there are on a given day.
• Helicopters. See helicopter noise in Los Angeles.
• Aircraft noise below 55 CNEL, which people can still hear.
• An official or measured aircraft level. The layer is an estimate derived from the official contours, and it does not replace any official airport notice. See Limits.

Area pages whose boundary lies within 3 km of the Van Nuys Airport reference point, alphabetically: Encino, Lake Balboa, Los Angeles, North Hills East, North Hills West, Northridge East, Northridge South, Panorama City, Reseda, Van Nuys. Distance to the airport is the only thing this list says; each page has its own modeled figures.

Which areas lie inside the Van Nuys Airport 65 CNEL contour?

This list uses the airport’s published 65 CNEL contour: the line in CA Airport Noise Standards Quarterly Report – 1st Quarter - Van Nuys (2026), received by Quiet LA on 3 June 2026. It is the outermost official line the map starts from. An area page is listed when more than 0.01 square kilometers of the area lie inside that line, found by laying the official contour over the area boundaries.

Cities and communities: Los Angeles.

Neighborhood Council areas in the City of Los Angeles: Lake Balboa.

The lists are alphabetical and in no other order. Being on one says nothing about the sound at any address in the area: the contour comes from the document named above, and Quiet LA’s aircraft estimate is derived from it, in the 24 h view only. Each area page has its own modeled figures.

How to send a noise comment about Van Nuys Airport

Contacts checked against the LAWA and FAA pages on 21 October 2026. Phone numbers change, so confirm on the agency page before you call.

LAWA’s Van Nuys page lists four ways to submit a noise comment: the Viewpoint mobile app for iPhone and Android, the VNY noise comment form, VNY WebTrak (a live flight-tracking site where you can identify a flight and comment on it), and the 24-hour VNY Aircraft Noise Comment Line at (800) 560-0010. The same page lists the airport’s voluntary programs, including a no-early-turn program, a Fly Friendly and quiet departure program and a Quieter Nights program, and its noise abatement and curfew regulation.

The FAA regulates aircraft noise standards, flight procedures and air traffic. For noise from a local airport, it says to contact the airport first; for general concerns it directs people to its ANCIR Portal. Other noise has other contacts: see who to call about noise in Los Angeles.