Jet noise from Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport continues to rattle Howard County.After many months of mounting complaints, now comes word that the Federal Aviation Administration will meet in September with state and local leaders to review mounting noise complaints.Complaints – which some residents in the airport's flight paths have felt are falling on deaf bureaucratic ears – are nothing new. Yet excessive noise reports filed with airport and FAA authorities have more than doubled from 2014, to 1,849 in 2015. One resident described the situation at her Elkridge house last year as living with constant thunderstorms. This year some residents say the noise is getting worse.One possible reason could be an updated air-traffic control system that allows jets to fly at a lower altitude on approach and departure.While the meeting with local leaders is long overdue, those expecting a rapid solution will be disappointed.The airport isn't moving. Takeoff and landing patterns shift frequently for a number of reasons, mostly having to do with wind direction and weather, so pilots can't follow the same course with precision every day. Technology has made aircraft engines quieter and more fuel-efficient but BWI is used by some of the largest commercial aircraft. Based on one federal forecast, traffic at BWI is projected to double by 2040.Noise must not be dismissed. It can interrupt everything from sleep to outdoor activities and can affect property values. At the same time, liabilities can also be assets: Proximity to an international airport is a frequent economic-development recruiting tool and the Baltimore area has easy access to three major airports – BWI, Washington Dulles and National – a convenience that provides business and leisure travelers with options.Federal rules encourage collaboration with communities to mitigate noise, with programs that buy severely affected properties or by offering better soundproofing in nearby buildings. Flight paths can be rejiggered. A consultant's "noise exposure map" prepared in 2014 shows that by 2019, BWI flight paths will largely be to the west and southeast of the airport. Picture a clock with its hands at 9:25 and that's the pattern, aligned with BWIs main runways. The western footprint aims directly at southern Howard.The late summer meeting is an important waypoint in coming up with answers and options, realizing that no solution will be perfect.