London house prices may take a hit from new narrower Heathrow flight paths that will create ‘noise sewers’, residents fear.
Britain’s busiest airport is currently looking at 181 options of modernising the routes planes take that campaigners say will increase the number of flights.
It is part of a national masterplan being led by the Civil Aviation Authority and the Department for Transport to restructure the pathways of the already congested motorways in the sky.
Hopes are that the changes would save time and fuel, as well as decrease delays and reduce noise for some of the residents already living under the flight paths.
But warnings have been sounded the ground-based navigation beacons that could be used to navigate aircraft can create ‘noise sewers’.
A Richmond council Heathrow meeting this week on how to respond to the proposals heard that Performance Based Navigation (PBN) could be used for navigating planes.
The system, already used in parts of America, including New York, uses ground-based navigation beacons to direct aircraft to the airport which creates narrower and more consistent paths.
A briefing paper for the Special Standing Committee on Heathrow warned ‘this may mean that some areas see an increased frequency in planes overhead, whilst others are less overflown’.
‘Analysis of its implementation in the US has found to have the negative impact of creating “noise sewers” whereby airport noise is concentrated over specific neighbourhoods along the flight-paths,’ the document stated.
Campaigners argue the modernisation programme will result in an extra 60,000 flights soaring over the picturesque Richmond Park ‘that threatens to destroy the peace and tranquility of London’s most important nature reserve’.
Friends of Richmond Park writes on its website: ‘This is about moving existing arrivals and departures to overfly new areas – and some of the shortlisted options are almost certain to happen.
‘The Park is home to some of the capital’s rarest species and a haven for people and families seeking respite from the city.
‘The impact of the potential new flights over Richmond Park – up to 235 a day, one every 90 seconds at peak time – would be catastrophic.’
The new routes will today be debated in the House of Commons to discuss the impact of aircraft noise on local communities.
Liberal Democrat and Richmond Park MP Sarah Olney, who secured the debate, told the Standard her constituents’ lives had for years been ‘blighted’ by ‘constant air traffic’ above their homes.
‘The news of narrower flight paths will no doubt be cause for concern for many affected communities. The impact on local residents could be far beyond simply noise complaints,’ she said.
‘The impact could be widespread from hitting house prices, to disrupted sleep, impacting local communities’ health, work, and personal lives.’
Aircraft today mostly follows outdated routes that were put in place during the 1950s. With modern technology and updated airspace designs, aircraft could climb more quickly and take more direct routes.
Carbon emissions could also be reduced through a reduction in fuel use.
A spokesperson for Heathrow said: ‘Despite the progress we have made to reduce the area most impacted by aircraft noise by 41% in 2023 since 2006, we know that noise is an issue for some people in our local communities.
‘That’s why we are doing all we can to find new ways to become a quieter airport.
‘We will continue to work in close partnership with our airlines, regulators, air traffic controllers and local communities to find new ways to minimise the impacts of our operations.’