For six months last year, supersonic aircraft swept over Oklahoma City, subjecting its inhabitants to eight sonic booms a day. It was part of an elaborate test conducted by the Federal Aviation Agency to discover just how much annoyance and damage the booms will cause groundlings, if and when a projected supersonic transport (SST) is ever built and put into full service by the nation's airlines.
When the Pictures Start Falling. Despite the fact that Oklahoma City is an air-minded town with one-third of its inhabitants more or less dependent on the aviation industry, its citizens could not honestly say that they had enjoyed their six-month experience. The booms affected people and houses as far as 16 miles from the flight path. A total of 9,594 people complained of damage to buildings, 4,629 filed formal damage claims, and 229 collected $12,845.32, mostly for broken glass and cracked plaster. The reports on the experiment concluded cautiously that the booms did little harm to properly constructed buildings, but made no commitment about the possible effects of frequent and long-continued booms, or about what kind of buildings could be considered improperly constructed. No items were knocked off walls or shelves in the four furnished test houses in the close-in boom area, but the report found that "the booms have initiated or aggravated some damage in the areas of bric-a-brac, wall hangings, wall covering, plaster, sheet-rock and glass."
Far worse than damage to buildings was the annoyance the big bangs caused. Says the report: "Some interferences or interruptions of ordinary living activities, principally house rattles and vibrations, were reported by almost all respondents. Startle and fear of booms were next in importance, being mentioned by 40% of all close residents." Toward the end of the test, more than half of those questioned reported "serious" or "more than a little" annoyance. The manmade thunder never sounded at night, but 10-15% of those close to the booms reported interference with sleep and rest.
The Amber Light. At the end of six months, the overwhelming majority (73%) gallantly felt that they could learn to live with eight booms a day. But one out of every four felt that he could not. Still, when those who were uncertain about the advisability of supersonic planes were reminded that the French, British and Russians were already working on them, eight out of ten patriotically agreed that the U.S. should proceed with an SST of its own.
If the SST ever replaces conventional jetliners, eight booms a day will be only a foretaste; cities will get scores of booms daily, and they will not be spared at night. It may some day be possible to design supersonic aircraft so that their booms will be less annoying and damaging, but this is by no means certain. The Federal Aviation Agency summed up by urging more study—an amber rather than a green light to the supersonic age.