News Updates
September 19 2024
Campaigners welcome Leeds City Council decision to ban old noisy planes from flying at night from Leeds Bradford Airport
In the ongoing struggle between Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) and the Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport (GALBA), campaigners have notched up another win.
On Monday 16 September, Leeds City Council issued a planning Enforcement Notice against the airport which requires LBA to stop breaking the night flight rules by flying older, noisier planes at night. LBA has until 14 November to comply with the Enforcement Notice.
Nick Hodgkinson, Chair of GALBA, said: “This action by the Council is very welcome. LBA has been ignoring the rules by flying noisy old planes in the early hours when people are trying to sleep.”
“So this Enforcement Notice is good news for everyone who lives under the flight path. We congratulate Leeds City Council for taking responsibility in its role as LBA’s regulator.”
The Enforcement Notice specifically prohibits planes with a noise Quota Count of 1 (QC1) from flying at LBA between 11pm and 7am. LBA may appeal against the Notice.
Ian Coatman, GALBA’s Secretary, said: “Remember that the airport’s boss has tried to change the meaning of the night flight rules by making four applications for Certificates of Lawful Existing Use or Development (CLEUDs).”
“Three of them, including the one about QC1 planes, have already been rejected but LBA appears to have ignored that and continued to fly those planes at night. We’re confident that the Council will reject the last of LBA’s CLEUDs soon.”
Andy Tait, who lives close to the airport, said: “LBA’s bosses are showing utter contempt for the rules and the Council. As someone directly affected by LBA’s rule breaking, I hope that Leeds City Council follows through on their enforcement action. This issue is about public health and the rule of law.”
“I’m absolutely certain that LBA will break the rules that limit the number of night flights again this summer. This is the third year running that the airport has simply ignored the rules – rules that exist to protect human health. This lawlessness has to be stopped.”
Notes
Enforcement Notice: the full notice is available here. Para 5 is the key section: “WHAT YOU ARE REQUIRED TO DO. Cease all departures, during the night time period (2300-0700) of aircraft with a Quota Count of 1.”
CLEUD applications: in December 2023, LBA submitted four applications for Certificates of Lawful Existing Use or Development (CLEUD) to Leeds City Council. They asked the Council to reinterpret the meaning of the rules that limit night time flying so as to allow a major rise in the number of night flights. Three CLEUDs have been rejected and the Council has said that a decision on the last one will be made within two months. Leeds Bradford Airport has stated that it intends to appeal against all the decisions.
Night flight rules: local planning conditions impose a cap on the number of night time flights allowed at LBA. Leeds City Council has responsibility for monitoring and enforcing those conditions. They define the Summer Season as British Summer Time, the night time period as 23:00 to 07:00 and an aircraft movement as a landing or a departure.
Night flight breaches: LBA broke the night flight rules in the 2022 summer season and the Council issued a breach of condition notice against LBA in June 2023. LBA broke the rules again in summer 2023 but the Council took no action. GALBA expects LBA to break the rules again this year by the end of next week.
Night flights and human health: see the scientific data collated on p3 of the 2024 report “Aviation is a Health Issue” published by Stay Grounded. Also see the Frankfurt airport research by Greiser, E. et al. (2013): Social and economic consequences of night-time aircraft noise in the vicinity of Frankfurt/Main airport.
Leeds Bradford Airport is big enough already