Birmingham Airport night flight limit relaxed
10.06.11
A night flight limit threatened to ground flights to and from Birmingham Airport – hitting holidaymakers and local companies, the Birmingham Mail reports. The need for companies in the region to bring in more freight in by air meant the airport faced the prospect of reaching its annual quota of night flights well before the end of the year. However, as an interim measure, the airport has been given the go-ahead by Solihull Council to base the number of night time flights allowed in 2011 on the busiest year during the past 5 years, rather than on recession-hit last year.
A spokesman for the airport told the newspaper: ‘You could say we were facing the prospect of being the victim of our own success. Traditionally the number of night flights we are allowed is based on five percent of the previous year’s air traffic movements, but because of the recession business was down last year, so to impose limits based on last year would have hit us hard just at a time when industry needs to use us more.'
‘We have picked up a lot of freight business from the continued night closure of Coventry Airport, but faced the prospect of having to turn business away. We estimate we would have reached our annual night flying limit of 4,347 flights during September. This would have resulted in the airport turning away all night movements. Because of this interim measure we will now be in a position to meet the needs of Midlands industry and keep flying.’
She stressed, however, that even though there would be more night time flights than last year the airport would not be increasing the number above what it had been in recent years. And in a move to help keep its ‘neighbours’ happy the airport has proposed to reduce the noise level that aircraft are allowed to operate from 87 decibels to 85.
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