Noise respite plans at Heathrow prepare for take-off

Plans have been submitted for alternate take-offs and landings at the northern and southern Heathrow runways to give ‘respite’ to neighbouring residents.

The legacy of the Government’s now-scrapped 1952 Cranford Agreement prevents aircraft from taking off eastwards from the northern runway unless in exceptional circumstances.

Departures are mostly into a headwind and the south-west prevailing wind at Heathrow means around 70 per cent of operations are in a westerly direction.

Meanwhile, only the southern runway is used when planes take off towards the east.

Runway alternation at Heathrow provides noise respite for those living under the initial westerly departure routes and people living east of the airport affected by aircraft noise on the final approach.

Heathrow uses one runway for landings and the other for take-offs and switches the operation at 3pm. The alternation changes weekly, so noise is shared between communities under the flight paths.

If weather permits, there is a weekly rotation between westerly and easterly operations with all four runway operations over a four-week cycle.

However, the ‘Easterly Alternation’ project requires ground infrastructure changes.

These include a new, larger noise barrier and taxiway adjustments on the airfield to move aircraft between terminals and the northern runway.

Heathrow Airport Limited has submitted a planning application currently in consultation with local planning authority Hillingdon Council, and representations are due by January 20, 2025.

A Heathrow spokesperson said: “We know that noise is an important issue for local communities which is why we have published clear reduction targets in our new Noise Action Plan.

“Our noise footprint has reduced by 41 per cent since 2006 and we expect to see further reductions.

“Easterly alternation is aimed at delivering predictable noise respite to more communities and is coupled with our ongoing work to install noise insulation for our nearest neighbours.”

A previous application in 2013 was granted planning permission from the Secretary of State in 2017, but has since expired, as works didn’t go ahead because of third runway proposals.

Heathrow says these plans will not change the number of aircraft flying in and out of the airport and are not a precursor to any potential airport expansion.

Some communities will experience new noise overhead if not previously flown over.

Meanwhile, others will experience a decrease in overhead flights, but an alternation schedule will be published in advance to provide predictability.

The application’s environmental statement considers the impact and effects of the proposed development for changes in aircraft noise and how noise levels are distributed around the airport.

There is a ‘slight beneficial’ impact in areas such as Oakley Green, Dedworth, Clewer New Town and Windsor with noise potentially reduced by 1 or 2 decibels.

However, Old Windsor could notice a ‘slight adverse’ noise increase by 1 to 2 decibels.

The noise difference is still at the lower end of the scale ranging from 0 or ‘no change’ to 6.0 which is ‘moderate’.

The planning application can be viewed on the Hillingdon Council website by searching using the planning application reference: 41573/APP/2024/2838.