Air Quality
Our Commitment
Tweed-New Haven Airport (HVN) is committed to building a healthier, more sustainable future—together with the communities we serve. Through collaboration, transparency, and action, we are advancing our commitment to protecting air quality across all aspects of our operations.
These efforts reflect our broader goal of maximizing aviation’s social and economic benefits while minimizing its impact. Building strong, trusted relationships with the community is central to our mission, and we welcome continued dialogue from residents on this important issue.
From cleaner operations to cleaner air, HVN is committed to building a healthier, more sustainable future — together with the communities we serve.
Residential Indoor Air Program
Announced in June 2025, Tweed-New Haven Airport (HVN) is stepping forward with action to launch a Residential Indoor Air Program to provide high-efficiency air purifiers to 815 local households at no cost — a proactive response to community concerns that brings together local voices and airport leadership to deliver real-world solutions.
In partnership with the City of New Haven, 496 homes will be eligible for the program. HVN will also extend the program to an additional 319 households in East Haven.
Each eligible household will receive a medical-grade HEPA filter (Alen FLEX unit), designed to capture 99.9% of airborne particles as small as 0.1 microns. The units are effective in spaces up to 1,400 square feet and are widely used in healthcare, commercial, and educational settings. Alen’s technology is backed by a lifetime guarantee and has been recognized by Consumer Reports, Forbes, and the Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America.
All eligible residents will receive direct outreach with information on enrollment and delivery beginning in late July/early August.
Air Quality Monitoring
As a service to the New Haven community, the City of New Haven has installed 11 particulate matter (PM2.5) sensors throughout the city, including near major transportation corridors. These sensors provide near real-time data—updated every 10 minutes—allowing residents and stakeholders to monitor local air quality.
Sensor locations were selected based on geographic coverage, proximity to transportation routes, and the availability of city infrastructure for power and data connectivity. Four of these sensors are currently positioned in and around HVN.
For more information, visit the link here.
About the sensors: The City of New Haven uses sensors from PurpleAir (www.purpleair.com), a common provider of low-cost community air quality (PM2.5) sensors. The PurpleAir unit has two sensors for PM2.5, and the unit compares values from the two sensors for increased accuracy. The sensors (Plantower PMS-5003) work by using a solid state laser and a detector plate to detect pulses of light reflecting off of particles drawn through the detection chamber by a small fan. The size of the pulses correlates with the size of the particle detected. There are a significant number of community PurpleAir devices in New Haven (map.purpleair.com) and you can identify City-installed devices as they have “City of New Haven” in their name.
Zero-Emissions Ground Fleet
Tweed-New Haven Airport (HVN) is advancing its commitment to a more sustainable, zero-emissions future.
With unanimous approval from the New Haven City Plan Commission in April 2025, HVN’s management company, Avports, will move forward with plans to install a hydrogen fueling dispenser and an additional electric vehicle (EV) charger—marking a significant step in the airport’s transition to a zero-emissions fleet. Two hydrogen-powered vehicles will be added once the station is operational, complementing the three EVs already in service.
HVN has also applied for FAA funding to add electric mowers and a zero-emissions airfield sweeper.
Through these efforts, HVN continues to invest in cleaner, greener technologies — a critical element in building the airports of tomorrow and powering the future of aviation.
Read more at the New Haven Independent here.
Powering the Future of Aviation with NASA, National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL)
HVN announced in September 2024 that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), in partnership with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), selected Tweed New Haven Airport (HVN) as the first FAA Part 139 certified commercial airport in the United States to join the “Airport as Energy Nodes (ÆNodes)” activity. Avports, as airport manager and operator, submitted the proposal to partner with NREL and NASA on ÆNodes on behalf of the Tweed New Haven Airport Authority (TNHAA), the airport sponsor.
ÆNodes is an activity within the Convergent Aeronautics Solutions Project of NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate in collaboration with NREL to research how airports can provide the right form and quantity of energy needed for future aviation operations in scalable, affordable, and sustainable value to aviation and community stakeholders.
With the dawning of zero-emission aviation, advanced/regional air mobility, and the electrification of vehicles, including conventional aircraft and electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) air taxis, airports will require alternative energy forms while establishing the airport as a desirable component of the community energy solution.
Learn more from the New Haven Independent here and WTNH here.
Building a Modern, 21st Century HVN
HVN is building a bigger, better, and truly 21st-century airport—combining critical infrastructure upgrades with strong environmental protections, long-term sustainability strategies, and a thoughtful commitment to the surrounding communities.
Learn more at the link here.
