UK Airport Flight Path Consultation Closes
The UK's airport flightpath consultation ends today - bringing to an end months of debate over how the UK's airspace will be managed in the future.
The consultation was brought about by the proposed reorganisation of flight paths into the UK's major airports in the south and east.
National Air Traffic Services (Nats), the company responsible for managing UK airspace, wants to introduce four new holding stacks to serve London's airports - Heathrow, London City, Stansted and Luton in an attempt to reduce the noise impact of aircraft on populated urban regions.
Organisations and people likely to be affected by the flight path changes were invited to have their say on the proposals during the consultation, which began in February.
The end of the consultation was marked by a rally in London on Thursday of environmental protesters, MPs and residents' action groups, who then took a letter of protest to Nats' headquarters on the South Bank.
Airport Flightpath Noise
The consultation invited comments from residents and businesses across London, Hertfordshire, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and the Chilterns.
Campaigners argue that the re-routed flight paths would mean increased aircraft noise levels for up to 500,000 in these areas.
John Stewart from the AirportWatch group, said: "The only reason Nats is proposing these changes is to create more airspace to cater for the government's aggressive plans to expand aviation".
Nats say the changes to the flightpaths are necessary in order to improve airspace efficiency in light of the anticipated increase in the number of flights over coming decades, as well as to reduce air traffic congestion.
The plans involve re-directing arriving and departing flights into London airports over rural areas in order to reduce airport flightpath noise to populated areas in the south and east. Nats say the re-drawn flightpaths will mean 20% fewer people will be affected by noise.
Aircraft Noise Levels
However, this has angered residents in rural areas who believe they will suffer from higher aircraft noise levels as a result.
Tom Jackson, who lives in Essex, told the BBC: "If the new proposals go ahead there will be more noise, more disturbance for us. The argument is that by changing flight paths and stacking areas, they will move congestion from those areas that are already busy. But I don't think it's fair to inflict the air traffic on people in rural areas. One of the reasons we chose to live where we live is for the rural aspect and the peace and quiet".
Dick Histed, a Suffolk resident, added: "The new plans will see a regular stream of aircraft. Nobody should think that we're saying these aircraft are deafening. They're not. But compared to the quiet backdrop of the countryside they can be heard. It's a grating, tearing sound and it's the repetition that's the problem. It makes us frustrated".
Nats will forward the responses to its consultation to the Civil Aviation Authority for evaluation. A decision on the flight paths is expected later this year - if approved, the new flightpaths could be in place by spring 2009.
Source - Airport International's Aviation Correspondent
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