Air transport represents a dynamic and fast growing industry that fits well with the needs of nowadays society. The process of liberalization and deregulation in the air transport market
introduced by the European Commission in the last decade, has
deeply modified the structure of aviation at Community level. The
growths in importance of carriers with a different economic structure along with the growth of regional airports are among the most important products of the changed scenario. Regional airports occupy a central role within the deregulated market since they represent preferred destinations for low-cost carriers and spokes for network carriers. However aviation represents a source of environmental externalities, especially at local level, which interferes with human activities. If on the one hand the impact of emissions at local level is under study and deserves a better understanding, on the other hand noise has always been a serious problem for dwellings located near the airports.