Putney MP Persuades Minister to Investigate Early Morning Flights

Fleur Anderson claims Heathrow 'pushing the rules'

Local people believe the number of early morning flights is increasing

Following representations from Putney’s MP, a government minister has agreed to launch an investigation into whether Heathrow is adhering to limits on early morning flights.

Fleur Anderson says she has been receiving a significant number of complaints from her constituents and that she fears that Heathrow may be ‘pushing the rules’ and breaching the spirit if not the letter of the restrictions that should apply.

In response Transport Minister Kevin Foster has agreed to investigate the matter if it is found restrictions have been broken. Heathrow says that an investigation will not be required because they deny breaking any limits.

Flights have been coming into land over Putney as early as 4am and the number arriving early in the morning appears to many to be increasing.

Fleur Anderson said, “Local residents have shared stories of being regularly woken up in the small hours of the morning by planes flying into Heathrow.

“It is becoming increasingly clear that Heathrow is pushing the rules on night flights as far as it can. One constituent living under the flight path noted on a recent night that flights started at 04:17 and by 05:55 air traffic was almost continuous. This is just unacceptable. It’s also clear that special dispensation for late running flights is being given on a near-daily basis.”

The ‘night flight’ quota period defined for Heathrow is defined by the Government as between 11.30pm and 6am. Heathrow is permitted to have 5,800 night flights a year - 3,250 in the summer season and 2,550 in the winter season – this is 16 flights per night on average to Heathrow.

Additional flights should only be allowed in special circumstances such as strong winds speeding up the flight, rather than becoming the usual time-tabling for flights.

Ms Anderson added, “I have now raised this in Parliament and written to the Minister for Transport, and I welcome the agreement to hold an investigation. I have asked the Minister to publish the data on how many dispensations have been made for early flights, the reasons for these flights for penalties for airlines and Heathrow if the quota is being exceeded.

“My constituents need assurance that Heathrow will follow the regulations that they’re bound by and put an end to their unnecessary suffering. Sleep deprivation can cause huge suffering and impact mental and physical wellbeing. Heathrow and the Government must show they are treating this issue with the seriousness this issue deserves.”

A Heathrow spokesperson said: “To be clear, our night-time operations are heavily restricted and each year we remain well within the movement limits set out by Government. Night flights are an essential part of Heathrow’s operation and are an important contributor to the economic benefits the aviation sector provide, however they form a very small part of our operation. We recognise that noise created at night can cause disturbance to our local communities, so we continue to take action wherever possible to improve our operational performance to help further reduce night-time noise."

Heathrow denies any restrictions have been disregarded and says it is currently well under the limit for the number of night flights allow.

A Heathrow spokesperson said, “To be clear, our night-time operations are heavily restricted and each year we remain well within the movement limits set out by Government. Night flights are an essential part of Heathrow’s operation and are an important contributor to the economic benefits the aviation sector provide, however they form a very small part of our operation. We recognise that noise created at night can cause disturbance to our local communities, so we continue to take action wherever possible to improve our operational performance to help further reduce night-time noise."

As we enter into the quieter winter period, Heathrow says the industry is continuing to scale up recruitment, which it believes will help to reduce the risk of delays and disruption to flights.

The Government has powers under Section 78 of the Civil Aviation Act to take ensure airports observe flight restrictions placed on them, including requesting reports on noise, and issuing fines if such reports are not supplied as requested.

October 14, 2022