More early morning flights could land at Heathrow between 5am and 6am under proposals unveiled by airport bosses today.
They suggest switching some flights that currently land between 6am and 7am, but using one runway instead of two.
It would mean residents under the landing path would suffer noise from up to a dozen more planes between 5am and 6am. But people living under the other runway’s arrival path would suffer little or no disturbance.
Around 16 flights a day currently arrive between 4.30am and 6am, with 42 landing between 6am and 7am.
Currently, two runways are used for landings between 6am and 7am. Under the proposals, all flights would land at only one runway from 5am to 7am. The runway used would be alternated, probably weekly.
The shake-up, which would require a slight increase in the night flight quota, is among several proposed by Heathrow in a submission to the Airports Commission and include:
* No longer concentrating planes on a few flight paths to lessen noise for areas overflown but spreading it instead to other communities.
* Allowing planes to take off and land eastwards when there is little or no wind. This will lead to a small reduction in noise over London, possibly from 60 fewer arrivals a day, but more disturbance over Berkshire.
* Using “operational freedom” measures, including “early vectoring” which sees planes divert more quickly off traditional take-off flight paths.
“We are listening to local residents’ concerns,” said Colin Matthews, Heathrow’s chief executive, but he stressed that only a third runway could address the airport’s capacity problems.
Anti-Heathrow expansion group HACAN said the early morning changes were “definitely worth considering”.
In a submission to the Airports Commission, London Mayor Boris Johnson said lifting the legal cap on the annual 480,000 flights at the airport, which is at full capacity, would take years.
Mr Johnson, who wants to build a “super airport” in the Thames Estuary, said: “The history of airport policy has been dominated by short-termism and attempts to squeeze ever more flights into Heathrow. It is now time to accept the reality that Heathrow is full.”
