Flight path from SRQ changes direction over Longboat Key

A nearly two-decade-old flight path over Longboat Key changed, according to recent communications between Sarasota Bradenton International Airport staff and Longboat Key. 

On May 21, SRQ Senior Vice President, Operations & Public Safety Lionel Guilbert emailed Town Manager Howard Tipton to notify him of the change in air traffic procedure made by the Federal Aviation Administration. 

Up until earlier this month, aircraft departing from SRQ’s Runway 32 made a left turn after take-off on a 265-degree heading and crossed Longboat Key just north of the county line, according to an email from Guilbert to Tipton. This procedure was called the “SRKUS” procedure. 

According to Guilbert in the email to Tipton, the SRQ Airport Authority was notified by the FAA of this proposed change in November 2023, after which SRQ reached out to the FAA seeking background information and the reason behind the change. 

“The FAA stated the SRKUS departure needed to be amended mainly due to safety reasons filed by the Air Traffic facilities of Tampa Approach Control. Also, FAA separation criteria changed which we were told was another reason for the procedural change,” Guilbert stated in an email to Tipton.

This led to a new departure, dubbed the “TIDES” departure. This still requires the same left turn, but now at a 270-degree heading, said Guilbert in an email to Tipton. 

A 5-degree change in heading results in a shift in the flight path over Longboat Key of about 1 mile north. 

“It appears that this has been a conversation between SRQ and the FAA and as accurately noted with no Town or LBK citizen engagement,” Tipton said in an email to commissioners. 

The FAA conducted an environmental review for the new departure, which satisfied the requirements for the National Environmental Policy Act and meant no public engagement was required, according to Guilbert’s email. 

Further, Guilbert stated that the FAA said there was a 30- to 45-day comment period on the FAA Gateway website for public comment. 

“When the airport first became aware of the proposed change, the Airport Authority expressed serious concerns,” Guilbert said in the email. 

Guilbert went on to state that the airport asked the FAA why it did not reach out to SRQ and the community in the early stages of the process. This led to a meeting with the FAA group in charge of the new procedure, and Guilbert said that SRQ advised the FAA group that Longboat Key residents would take notice of the changes. 

“The airport urged the FAA to reconsider and engage the community. … Our pleas appear to have been disregarded as all suggestions were ultimately not implemented,” Guilbert said in the email.

In an emailed briefing to town commissioners, Tipton mentioned this may be added to the June 3 agenda as a discussion item. 

Flight path history 

Flight paths from SRQ over Longboat Key have been commonplace for a long time. 

The FAA first approved the SRKUS turn procedure in 1998. 

But, implementation of the turn was delayed due to additional FAA requirements and Longboat Key residents’ appeals. 

The appeals went to a federal appeals court which, in 2002, sided with the FAA and stated that the flight path would have no significant environmental impact on Longboat Key residents. 

In June 2006, the SRKUS procedure was implemented. 

This flight path meant that aircraft were leaving Runway 32, making a left turn after take-off and following a GPS path across Sarasota Bay and Longboat Key at an average speed of about 276 mph. 

In a previous study, flights were tracked departing from Runway 32 over an eight-day period. From March 1-8, 2021, there were a total of 281 flights.