Legal Definitions - aviation easement

An aviation easement (also known as an avigational easement) is a legal right that allows an airport or government entity to use the airspace above private property for the safe and efficient operation of aircraft. This right typically includes the privilege of flying aircraft over the property at certain altitudes and may impose restrictions on how the property owner can use their land, such as limitations on building height or the placement of structures that could interfere with air traffic.

Here are some examples illustrating an aviation easement:

• Example 1: Height Restrictions Near a Runway

  A developer plans to build a new apartment complex on land adjacent to a regional airport. Due to an existing aviation easement over that property, the developer is legally restricted from constructing buildings taller than 50 feet. This restriction ensures that the airspace above the property remains clear for aircraft approaching and departing the nearby runway, preventing potential hazards and maintaining safe flight paths.

  This example illustrates an aviation easement because it grants the airport the right to control the vertical use of the private property's airspace, imposing a specific height limitation on structures to ensure unobstructed flight operations.

• Example 2: Overflight and Noise Rights for a Major Airport

  Homeowners living several miles from a large international airport frequently experience aircraft flying directly over their homes at relatively low altitudes, resulting in significant noise. The airport acquired an aviation easement over these residential properties decades ago. This easement legally permits the airport to use the airspace above these homes for regular flight operations, meaning the homeowners cannot sue for trespass or nuisance related to the aircraft noise and overflights, as the airport has a granted right to do so.

  This example demonstrates an aviation easement by showing how it provides the airport with a legal right to utilize the airspace above private land for routine flight paths, effectively preventing property owners from challenging the noise or presence of aircraft as an infringement on their property rights.

• Example 3: Obstruction Marking Requirements

  A telecommunications company wants to erect a new cell tower on private land located within the flight path of a small municipal airport. An aviation easement covering this area requires that any structure exceeding a certain height must be equipped with specific aviation obstruction lighting and painted in particular colors. The easement grants the airport the authority to enforce these requirements to ensure the tower is visible to pilots, even though it's on private property.

  This example illustrates an aviation easement by showing how it can impose specific safety requirements on private property development (like lighting and marking of structures) to protect aviation safety and maintain clear, identifiable flight corridors.