Forum Topic

Aircraft early this morning

Was anyone else unfortunate enough to be disturbed at 12.35am,1.50 and again at 2.45 this morning by aircraft noise?I thought the night flights stopped at 11 and started again at 6.Anyone know what the times are and how I complain please?

Keith Iddon ● 5326d13 Comments

It's a common misconception that there is a ban or curfew on Heathrow night flights.  There isn't and there never has been.There are, however, restrictions on takeoffs and landings by the noisiest categories of aircraft between 11pm and 7am, and a limit on numbers of flights by other types from 11:30pm to 6am which allows for around 15 movements per night, averaged over the season.The rules are made by the Government, not the airport, and compliance is monitored by the DfT.

Dave Robertson ● 5325d

An informal local rule usually prevents the early morning landings taking place before 0430.In some circumstances the quota of night flights (usually around 15/16 a night) can be exceeded with exempt flights.It may be that the exemptions will rise as a way around the problems the airlines are anticipating with the Olympics. Expect a lot of special pleading to be going on as the conditions for the next lot of Operational Freedom trials get discussed.......

Tim Henderson ● 5325d

Absolutely correct.  British Airways has already made representations proposing a relaxation of the night flight quota, a further relaxation of the Operational Freedom trial restrictions on mixed mode, and permission for NATS to vector flights away from the existing noise preferential routes during the Olympics.http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmtran/writev/tog/m24.htm

Dave Robertson ● 5325d

And see some of the CAA responses at the Annexe inhttp://www.caa.co.uk/docs/589/APFGOlympicDistruption22032012.pdf

Tim Henderson ● 5325d

You must have been a light sleeper that night.  None of the planes were flying to or from Heathrow.The 12:35 plane was either an EasyJet flight from Malaga to Luton or a Monarch Airlines A330 heading south-eastwards to Gatwick, both of which passed over Brentford within a few minutes of each other.The 01:50 plane was a Ryanair Boeing 737 heading for Stansted.The 02:45 plane was a Monarch Airlines A321 from Tenerife to Luton.All these planes were flying at an altitude of around 9000 ft.  (Info from www.flightradar24.com )

Richard Jennings ● 5325d

Thanks for the info. Richard,

Keith Iddon ● 5324d

not that it helps much, but will give you the offending aircraft if you track back

Jonathan Portch ● 5324d

To add to previous answers, the Webtrak facility provides the ability to report LHR flights for noise, inappropriate runway usage etc....It is an important tool for ensuring that complaints are recorded. The responses generated from BAA are typically lame and tend to insult one's intelligence but it is still important to log abuse of agreed ATC convention.http://webtrak.bksv.com/lhr

Richard Collard ● 5324d

Who on earth believes that they have any say in the Airport or noise or pollution anyway?  Those poor people in Sipson how on earth can they live let alone sell their houses?Regularly planes seem to dump fuel into the air - once we were in the street having an evening conversation with some neighbours and just after a plane went over we were covered with a film of fuel.  :-(

Sarah Felstead ● 5324d

How many people bought their property before Heathrow was there? Most people knew trhey were on flight path before they moved in. The timings of  flights is hardly frequent at 3 a night.

Margaret Wittich ● 5323d

Margaret,Heathrow has grown massively since the 60's so many people probably did by their house there when it was asmallish airport.

Keith Iddon ● 5323d

"The timings of  flights is hardly frequent at 3 a night"Rubbish!  There are some 15-18 noisy arrivals each EARLY morning between 4.30am and 6am.  Some come from odd places like Lagos..just to transfer passengers to New York flights when, instead perhaps, they should be flying Lagos to New York direct.My particular concern is that there seem to be an increase in arrivals and departures AFTER 11pm, after midnight and later. Please don't belittle the growing incidence of NIGHT FLIGHTS.

Jim Lawes ● 5323d

"perhaps, they should be flying Lagos to New York direct."I don't think it would be commercially viable Jim. Smaller craft wouldn't hold enough fuel and larger ones would have to fly half empty. i.e. if they want to operate a regular service to customers. Heathrow sold itself to offer a tranship hub to the world and now we suffer.

Steve Taylor ● 5323d