Following Crispin Blunt’s continuing efforts pressing for urgent changes to the Gatwick westerly departure flight path, Gatwick Airport have finally indicated an implementation time at the end of May for the new flight path recommended by the Civil Aviation Authority last year.
In November the CAA Board adopted a recommendation on departure Route 4, paving the way for a new (Noise Preferential) Route to be implementation by Gatwick Airport from the end of May 2016. This will make the Standard Instrument Departure turning circle tighter and ensure that planes taking off to the west and heading east, fly back over the constituency further to the south, avoiding the densely populated urban areas of Reigate and Redhill.
Gatwick Airport presented the new flight path plans to the public at a community drop-in at Reigate Manor Hotel on 7th March and will be repeating the exercise at The Burford Bridge Hotel in Dorking on 15th March from 6pm onwards.
Crispin Blunt commented:
“This is a good result which should mean that noise pollution will be less concentrated over the densely populated areas of south Reigate and Redhill from June onwards. It is astonishing that it has taken so long to implement a new flight path since concerns were raised in 2014.
“I will continue to monitor the impact of this and other concentrated PR-NAV satellite based routes from local airports and I have made representations to Government seeking a policy which provides for greater dispersal and multiple respites for affected areas so as to alleviate aviation noise on local communities in the future.
“I also look forward to Gatwick’s review of all its departure flight paths during the course of this year.”
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I live under the Westerly departures flight path (Route4) and can honestly say it doesn’t bother me. When I moved to the area I accepted that living in the noise foot print of an international airport I would hear aircraft. Too many people have jumped onto NIMBY bandwagons claiming shock and horror that aircraft noise is “ruining their lives” yet they have chosen to live in the vicinity of the WORLD’s busiest single runway airport which has grown year on year in both passenger numbers and aircraft movements.
Mr Blunt imay not realise that most of the aircraft overflying Reigate and Redhill are from HEATHROW and if they are awarded a third runway the noise will double. By not supporting expansion at Gatwick, Mr Blunt is in effect supporting expansion at Heathrow. Just wait for the noise over Reigate to become a noise ghetto from hell, a huge environmental impact to our area.
You can track aircraft flying over your area by downloading the app “FlightRadar24” which will prove that aircraft overflying Reigate and Redhill are in the main from Heathrow, which will prove my point. The tweaking of Route 4 will make little difference.
I’m not worried by a bit of noise but obviously Mr Blunt is, perhaps he lives on the flight path.
What I am worried about is why he chose to vote in favour of a £30 cut in ESA?
PRIORITIES???????
Thanks for making Gatwick now fly over us now, the noise is awful. Previously it was dispersed so we had a bit of peace. Not any more they now fly by GPS over us all the time. Thanks.