Heathrow Flight Trials

Wandsworth residents are being urged to report increases in aircraft noise to the council while BAA conducts a four month flight pattern trial at Heathrow.

The tests last from November 2 until February 29, 2012.

You can log your complaint using our online survey tool, email it to eryans@wandsworth.gov.uk or call the council's aircraft noise hotline on 020 8871 5377.

The data collected will be used to help demonstrate the true impact on communities living under the flightpath.

About the trials

Under the established rules Heathrow is only permitted to use one runway for take offs and one for landing. Their use is switched everyday at 3pm to give residents under the flightpath a regular break from overhead planes.

During the trial BAA will be permitted to use both runways at the same time for arrivals when incoming flights face a delay of ten minutes or more.
This means more flights will land over central London during half-day respite periods when Wandsworth residents would normally get an eight hour break from aircraft noise.

The repite period timetable is inlcuded below.

The testing periods were approved by the South East Airports Taskforce Group which was set up by the Government to explore ways of making airports 'better, not bigger'.

There will be no increase in the overall number of movements at the airport as a result of the trial and it does no affect the rules governing night flights which will remain unchanged throughout the testing period.
The trials will be undertaken by BAA under the supervision of the Civil Aviation Authority.

Data from the flight trials is being published online at http://www.heathrowtrial.com/

Copies of the Department for Transport's report on the operational freedoms trial are available at http://www.dft.gov.uk/

Wandsworth is a founding member of the 2M Group of councils which overturned the previous Government's plans for a third runway at Heathrow in the High Court.

Respite period for incoming flights