Assessment of in-cabin noise of wide-body aircrafts

The aviation industry has seen dramatic growth over the decades till the recent disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, long-haul routes with a distance of more than 4000 km are common for major airlines worldwide. Therefore, aircraft cabin noise assessment is essential, especially in long-haul flights, for passenger and flight crew health wellness. In this paper, the cabin noise of five wide-body aircraft, namely Airbus A330-300ER, A350-900, A380-800, and Boeing B777-200ER and B787-900, was recorded using a calibrated in-house developed smartphone application. The sound pressure levels of in-cabin noise have been measured on two different decibel scales, namely, A-weighted [dB (A)] and C-weighted scales [dB(C)]. The sound pressure levels of Airbus A380-800 were lowest among selected models, while the in-cabin pressure level values of Airbus A350-900 were maximum. However, the difference in decibel levels between the aircraft is minimal as it is within 3 dB.(c) 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The aviation industry has experienced rapid growth, but has been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Assessing aircraft cabin noise is crucial for long-haul flights. This study recorded the cabin noise of five wide-body aircraft using a smartphone application and found that Airbus A380-800 had the lowest noise level, while Airbus A350-900 had the highest noise level.