NASA Studied Air Taxi Noise—The Results May Surprise You

Space agency surveyed about 360 participants living in New York City, Los Angeles, and Dallas-Fort Worth.

Jack Daleo

Thursday, February 26, 2026 at 02:31 PM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

NASA Langley researcher Sidd Krishnamurthy tests a remote platform developed to study human response to air taxi noise. [Credit: NASA/Ally Olney]

Key Takeaways:

NASA's VANGARD study found that people in high-background noise urban areas unexpectedly reported greater annoyance with electric air taxi sounds compared to those in low-noise environments.
Researchers hypothesize this increased annoyance in noisier areas may stem from heightened sensitivity to additional noise, rather than masking.
The findings, derived from nearly 360 participants rating simulated air taxi sounds, will inform advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft design and assist regulators like the FAA in establishing noise standards and operational procedures.

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According to NASA, background noise impacts the way people react to the buzzing and whirring of electric air taxis—but not in the way you might think.

The space agency this month released the initial findings from its Varied Advanced Air Mobility Noise and Geographic Area Response Difference, or VANGARD, study. The research’s most notable conclusion is that people living in areas with high background noise (think urban centers such as New York City) tend to report more annoyance with the air taxis than those living in low-noise areas.