Huge aircraft such as Airbus A380 are now flying lower out of airport, independent study finds, creating higher level of disturbance

Low-flying “super-jumbo” passenger planes have increased noise for some communities around Heathrow, an independent study has shown.

Research by PA Consulting, commissioned by Heathrow, confirmed complaints from residents that more planes were being concentrated on a flight path over Twickenham and Teddington, in the London borough of Richmond, with greatest disruption late at night and early in the morning.



The increased noise was thought to be due to trials of new flight paths, but the study found an underlying trend after the trials had ended for planes to fly lower than before - causing more disturbance to residents. Significantly for Heathrow, where noise is one of the biggest issues around further expansion, the lowest flying were typically modern planes, the A380 super-jumbos.



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Heathrow has argued that new generations of planes would reduce the noise around the airport. However, the results show that surrounding areas could suffer increasing disturbance from low-flying A380s after takeoff – a finding that could throw doubt on the projected impact of a third runway on surrounding areas.



The Airports Commission, led by Sir Howard Davies, recommended that a third runway be built at Heathrow, and the government is due to give its response in the autumn. Gatwick airport is still lobbying hard for its own proposed second runway, arguing that the commission’s report was flawed.

An ICM poll for the Guardian has found that Londoners are split on whether to follow the Davies recommendations, with 36% backing a third runway at Heathrow and 37% against. A majority of Conservative voters back the runway, 51% to 30%, but voters of all other parties mainly oppose expansion.

The greatest and most constant noise is experienced by neighbourhoods under the flight paths of planes preparing to land, normally to the east of Heathrow with the prevailing wind. Planes normally take off to the west but around one in three departures heads east. Residents of Teddington and Twickenham, about 5 miles south-east of Heathrow, complained they were now experiencing much more noise after takeoff.



Heathrow said the analysis confirmed that no new areas were being overflown, but did show there had been changes in the number, type, altitude and concentration of aircraft which affect people’s experience of noise.

Heathrow and surrounding area Heathrow and surrounding area

Paul McGuinness, of the Teddington Action Group, said: “In the wake of 2014’s flight trials, Heathrow told us that noise disruption would revert to pre-trial levels; but this independent report confirms the experience of residents, establishing that communities around Twickenham and Teddington are being exposed to greater levels of noise disruption from Heathrow than ever before.

“More worrying, the report indicates that this disruption flows from new flight trends, so it’s only likely to get worse.”



Heathrow said the analysis confirmed that no new areas were being overflown, but did show there had been changes in the number, type, altitude and concentration of aircraft which affect people’s experience of noise. A spokesperson added: “It isn’t necessarily the case that because some aircraft are flying lower they are noisier. The report has no bearing on our case for expansion, which takes in to account the operating procedures of aircraft today.”

The areas were outside a noise impact zone considered by the AC and do not qualify for mitigation measures, such as subsidised sound insulation. But residents argue that the way Heathrow’s noise contour was measured is inaccurate and did not capture the impact flights had on the area.



McGuinness added: “Imagine if a council’s noise abatement officer decided to measure sound and average it out over the course of a day when the neighbours weren’t in the house. They are measuring the silence and computing that into the average.”



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Heathrow said it would now work with airlines, the Civil Aviation Authority and the government to understand why some aircraft were now flying lower, and what this meant for noise.







It has also emerged that Boris Johnson has authorised another £1m of public money to be spent on rebutting the AC’s report on additional runway capacity. The London mayor has already spent £5.2m of the city’s resources on his unique proposals for a Thames estuary airport.



Labour’s London assembly transport spokesperson, Val Shawcross, said: “Boris Johnson’s estuary airport pipedream has already cost London taxpayers over £5m, despite being categorically ruled out by the Davies commission and all the experts.



“It’s clear there are serious issues with the Heathrow proposal but that doesn’t mean the answer is to pump another million pounds of taxpayers’ money into his dead-duck estuary airport scheme.”

But Daniel Moylan, the mayor’s senior adviser on aviation, said: “Since the election, only a few thousand pounds has been spent opposing Heathrow expansion, which is the declared policy of the mayor and of all mayoral candidates, including Labour’s.”

