Jim Cantwell has a problem.

It’s one a lot of us could be facing in a couple of weeks.

Cantwell recently copied me an e-mail that he was also sending on to any politician willing to listen.

“Listen” is the key word here. Because, according to his e-mail, it was 2:15 a.m. and all Cantwell could hear was the sound of airplanes flying over his home.
Brace yourself. Cantwell’s nightmare could be one a lot of us will soon be facing.

That’s because our friends at the Federal Aviation Administration last week announced that they could begin implementing their airport redesign plan to alleviate traffic backups at Philadelphia International Airport as soon as Dec. 17.

That comes despite the efforts of U.S. Reps. Joe Sestak, D-7, of Edgmont, and Rob Andrews, D-N.J. Sestak had been banking on the FAA sticking to its word that it would not seek to institute the changes, which will increase the number of flights at low altitudes over the heart of Delaware County, until the results of an investigation of the process was completed by the Government Accountability Office.

That no longer appears to be the case.

County Council, led by Chairman Andy Reilly, also has been active in fighting the redesign. They likely will be in court trying to halt – or at least delay – the plan.

In the meantime, Cantwell is saying something I’ve been hearing since last spring, the belief by some Delco residents that planes already are using different flight paths over the county.

Cantwell says the noise is already having an effect on his life, and he may not have an option other than to sell his house.

In the meantime, the clock is ticking. And the dreaded airport redesign plan, which will have what many are calling a “devastating” effect on a wide swath of the county, from Ridley Park through Upper Darby and out into Haverford, gets closer with each day.

Those pricey noise-canceling headphones might be moving to the top of a lot of Christmas wish lists.