Flight path changes proposed to reduce noise

3:02pm Thursday 21st February 2008

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Plans to change flight paths to and from major airports including Heathrow Airport have been unveiled today.

The proposals are a bid by National Air Traffic Services (NATS) to reduce by 20 per cent the number of people affected by noise from aircraft flying below 4,000ft.

The proposals redraw the current routes for planes travelling across south east England, and are aimed at reducing delays and lessening the environmental impact.

One of the planned changes is specifically intended to reduce congestion caused by planes flying over homes near Heathrow.

The proposals, which can be viewed in full at www.nats.co.uk/TCNconsultation, govern flights to and from major airports such as Heathrow, Stanstead, Luton and London City, as well as smaller ones including RAF Northolt.

Ian Hall, director of operations at NATS, said: "All these airports have grown considerably in the past 20 years; London City has grown from virtually nothing since the early 90s, and we have simply accommodated this growth within the existing airspace infrastructure.

"Just like bottlenecks on our roads, increased air traffic causes congestion in the airways meaning delay, and extra fuel burn and that has an impact on the environment.

"Re-drawing the routes enables us to make them more efficient to reduce delay.

"It also gives us the opportunity to reroute them to avoid flying over as many towns and villages as possible, especially at lower levels.

"That means less noise for people living underneath.

"Overall we will reduce, by some 20 per cent, the number of people affected by noise from departing aircraft flying below 4,000ft."

People can take part in the consultation, which started today, via the NATS website, where visitors can also enter their postcode to see the impact of the changes on their local area.

The document will also be sent to libraries.

The consultation period will end on May 22. The feedback received will be sent to the Civil Aviation Authority, which will decide if the changes should go ahead.

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