Formula 1 boss’s fury over new Heathrow aircraft noise – at least with Formula 1 people know where the noise is

A significant Formula One car racing engineer, who lives in Sunninghill under a Heathrow flight path test route, has joined an increasing band of residents complaining about the new flight paths over Bracknell and Ascot. He describes them as “intolerable”.  The chief technical officer at Formula One team Red Bull Racing has hit out at Heathrow after its new trial flight paths started last Thursday, for 5 months. The aims of the trials are to try to reduce ‘stacking’, speeding up departure times to cut departure intervals, so increasing airport profits. He said though having lived in Sunninghill since 1997 and the noise has never been an issue before. “It is pretty intolerable because currently we have planes flying over our heads at 11pm at night …. it’s very antisocial really. ….I can’t even sit in my garden and socialise with my friends because it is just too noisy. There has been no proper consultation…” Realising he himself works in a very noisy industry, he said “… with Formula One is that there are no new race tracks being built anywhere, so people who buy houses next to race tracks know what they are getting.” There is an active petition in the Ascot area against the flight path trials, with around 2,400 signatures today. 

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To view and sign the Ascot are petition visit :  Change.org – Ascot flight path petition

A TOP Formula One engineer has joined an increasing band of residents complaining of Heathrow Airport’s new flightpaths over Bracknell and Ascot, describing them as “intolerable”.

Photo owned by Rex Features

Adrian Newey, the chief technical officer at Formula One team Red Bull Racing, who lives in Sunninghill, has hit out at the airport’s bosses after its new trial flight paths started last Thursday.

Over the next five months, airport bosses and air traffic controllers are experimenting with flight path changes and new technology systems in a bid to reduce ‘stacking’ in the air and speed up departure times, putting more planes in the air at a faster rate.

Mr Newey, speaking exclusively to the News, said: “I have lived in Sunninghill since 1997 and it has never been an issue before.

“It is pretty intolerable because currently we have planes flying over our heads at 11pm at night, which is not ideal when I am in bed early due to an early start – it’s very antisocial really.

“It is just not pleasant. I can’t even sit in my garden and socialise with my friends because it is just too noisy. There has been no proper consultation with us either.”

Referring to the fact that he himself is involved in a noisy sport, Mr Newey said “I am involved in a noisy sport but the thing with Formula One is that there are no new race tracks being built anywhere, so people who buy houses next to race tracks know what they are getting.”

Mr Newey’s partner Amanda Smerczak has started a petition against the changes, asking the Government to stop them. It has so far attracted nearly 900 signatures.

Passenger jets have started passing over residents’ homes as low as 3,000ft.

There are six different trial routes for aircraft taking off from Heathrow, of which three affect our area. Some aircraft pass over Ascot and parts of Bracknell – including Martin’s Heron, Great Hollands, Birch Hill and Crown Wood.

Another to the north passes over North Ascot and the racecourse, while a further one to the south goes over Sunningdale and Lightwater.

The trial will last until January 26.

There will be a public consultation in 2016 and Heathrow’s ‘noise team’ has been briefed to deal with complaints.

Martin’s Heron resident Nigel Dumbrell, vice-chairman of the Harmans Water & The Parks, Martin’s Heron & The Warren Neighbourhood Action Group, said he was in his garden on Sunday and that the noise was ‘unbelievable’.

He said: “This is a new experience for us and is just not on. There must have been at least 20 planes flying low on Sunday.

“The aircraft were so low you could see their undercarriages.”

He added: “The airport did not warn us about these new flightpaths. We are happy to work closely with other NAG [Neighbourhood Action Group] and community groups in the area about this issue.”

Despite residents accusing the airport of a lack of consultation, a Heathrow spokesman said its proposals had not been kept under wraps and were accessible online.

There is a petition ready to sign aiming to stop the flight path trial immediately.

To view and sign this petition visit :  Change.org – Ascot flight path petition

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http://www.bracknellnews.co.uk/news/bracknell/articles/2014/09/08/103481-formula-1-bosss-fury-over-heathrow-aircraft-noise/

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Earlier:

Heathrow flight path changes / trial inflict more noise misery on Ascot area and 3 villages area

Heathrow airport and NATS are experimenting with flight path changes and new technology systems for Heathrow flights. The aim is to reduce ‘stacking’ of aircraft waiting to land, and to speed up departure times, getting more planes in the air per hour – in order make the airport more efficient (or more profitable). There is a series of trials, over a period of years from 2012 to 2017, advertised on Heathrow’s website. They are to inform the London Airspace Management Programme (LAMP) consultation. One trial, for departures to the west, started on 28th August and will last till January 2015. It will test how sharply aircraft are able to turn on take-off and how fast they can climb. The results will be factored into Heathrow’s revision of flight paths that are required under the European ‘SESAR’ programme. The reality for people being over-flown is that there are now more aircraft passing over Ascot, Sunningdale and Sunninghill, and these planes are low (around 3,000 feet) and climbing. The gaps between planes are also shorter than before. A petition has been set up by people in the Ascot area, to get the trial ended immediately. The new noise barrage has created new fears in those areas of the impact of a 3rd runway.

Click here to view full story…

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And

Conservative Councillors urge residents to speak up against noisy flight plan changes

10 SEPTEMBER 2014

Conservative Councillors in Ascot and the surrounding areas have urged residents to speak up against Heathrow’s trialled changes to their flight plans which have resulted in increased noise levels.

On the day the Davies Airport Commission reported interim findings that keep Heathrow expansion firmly on the table, Councillors in Ascot have urged residents to make their views about the airport’s flightpath trials affecting their area known.

Cllr Lynda Yong (Con, Sunninghill & South Ascot) said: “These changes came unannounced by Heathrow. The number of complaints I have received over the last few days as a result of the noise has been more than I have received in the entire twelve years I have been elected.

“Residents are extremely upset and my advice to them is to let Heathrow know directly about their concerns. I will be working with fellow councillors to see what the Council can also do in response to Heathrow’s actions.”

Cllr David Hilton (Con, Ascot & Cheapside) added: “Many people in the area depend on Heathrow, but Heathrow has to be reasonable. I urge those affected by the noise in this trial to write to  noise_complaints@heathrow.com. The more complaints they receive, the lower the probability that the trials will become permanent.”

The Conservative Authority has a good track record of standing up for residents who suffer the consequences of noise caused by Heathrow through innovative projects to monitor excessive aircraft noise, including the mobile phone app “WideNoise” throughout last year.

Cllr Carwyn Cox (Con, Hurley & the Walthams) Lead Member for Environmental Services commented: “Ascot residents should make their voice known to Heathrow Airport and highlight the disruption the aircraft noise creates. The Council will also collate any representations received in order to incorporate important resident concerns into its ongoing consultation with both Heathrow and the independent Airports Commission, as this is a worrying development for the residents who are being affected by the changed flightpaths.”

http://www.rbwmconservatives.com/conservative-councillors-urge-residents-to-speak-up-against-noisy-flight-plan-changes/

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