Reply to post: Re: FRA airport is very nearly in compliance with this law....

Germany orders Sept 1 shutdown of digital ad displays to save gas

anothercynic Silver badge

Re: FRA airport is very nearly in compliance with this law....

Well, given Schiphol (AMS) is surrounded by Amsterdam, Haarlem and to a lesser degree Hoofddorp and Utrecht, and the flight paths into and out of AMS cross those cities, and the airport has four runways, I think that it is justified to ask the airport to be more judicious with its aircraft movements.

I've stood in Het Amsterdamse Bos (which as you probably know is the forest to the east of the airport) early in the morning and heard and seen jets come in for runway 27 or runway 24, and I've *been* on planes heading in on those two runways. Those two cross over Amsterdam and Amstelveen (and thankfully, turn over the IJmeer, which reduces the noise impact somewhat). I've also stood in the same forest late at night hearing the rumblings of jets spooling up for the other two runways, Runways 18/36 L and R. And the Polderbaan primarily, which like its sister runway is north/south, but which is more popular, hits Haarlem and Aalsmeer with direct noise. The Netherlands is *flat* and noise travels (even in Het Amsterdamse Bos).

Charles de Gaulle (CDG) is lucky in the sense that it only really has Goussainville (and maybe Gonesse and a smattering of Paris/Saint Denis's suburbs) to the west to deal with. They're judicious with their runway uses and can get away with night operations. Brussels Zaventem (BRU) is in a similar situation to AMS, which is why all major freight operators head for Liège, which has a south-westerly approach into runways 4L/R over farmland. Leipzig-Halle (another major freight airport) also lies primarily in farmland and has deal with only Schkopau or Merseburg to the west in terms of noise while the east is clear.

And Heathrow... well... I've sat in a hotel not too far from LHR where I've had to pause my conversation to let a jet pass in order to be audible. They're already under a noise curfew because I can understand the feelings of those in Harlington and Hounslow when they are constantly bombarded with jets coming in overhead up to 20 hours a day. To a degree I also commiserate with those in Mortlake and Richmond/Isleworth; I've stood on Chiswick Bridge with some really loud f***ers coming in overhead (surprise, surprise, usually the 747 or the 777). The A380 was again surprisingly quiet with more a rumble than a piercing whistling noise. If LHR's third runway ever happens, expect the noise curfew to be extended further with less aircraft movements allowed than they would like.

However, given I aviate (*cough*) regularly and have a vested interest in the industry, I fully understand the conundrum and the consternation as to why people are suddenly ganging up on airports and airfields. GA airfields (if they host only prop planes) I fully commiserate with; it's unfair given that those planes are not really all that noisy - hell, I have Oxford Airport just up the road). GA airfields with jets (the small-noisy-bastard business kind) are somewhat in between (*cough* OXF). As a comparison, I was at the industry day of one of the previous Farnborough Shows pre-pandemic where the A380 was a display plane. It trundled onto the runway *after* one of the little business jets that are Farnborough Airport's bread and butter was departing. The difference in noise profile was striking. The A380 was, despite its size and its giant Trent 900s, perceived as quieter by a significant margin! Ditto for the 787 that did its display that day too. The piercing howl of the small diameter turbofans would be an irritation at night or at times you'd probably want to relax, even for someone with a distinct aviation bent.

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