PUBLIC INQUIRY DECION NOT EXPECTED BEFORE SUMMER
A decision on London City’s application for expansion is not expected before the summer. Details of the application: https://www.hacaneast.org.uk/new-page-61
Meanwhile, you can read our latest newsletter here:
Link to newsletter: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:cd7e8cc2-ebb3-4670-8ad4-c55ac55553d2
London City GETS VERY FEW COMPLAINTS IN COMPARION TO THE NUMBERS IMPACTED BY NOISE. IT THEREFORE CAN SEEM NOISE IS NOT A PROBLEM.
DON’T COMPLAIN EVERY DAY!
BUT SEND REGULAR REMINDERS YOU ARE STILL ANNOYED!
Contact the Environment Manager at:
London City Airport, City Aviation House, Royal Docks, London E16 2PB
Email: environment@londoncityairport.com
Or call +44 (0)207 646 0200
Alternatively use the London City Airport Website: www.londoncityairport.com . Click on 'corporate' and then under Environment, click on 'Complaints and Enquirires'.
PDF of our leaflet: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:266d52e9-d74f-4931-a647-8b88dcaa3b91
public inquiry ends…….WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Thank you to everybody who helped us make our case against London City Airport's expansion plans at the Public Inquiry. It ended on 2nd February. The Inspector has 3 months to write her report & recommendation. It then goes to the Secretaries of State for Transport and Levelling Up for decision. We have no indication when that decision will be made public but it is likely before Parliament breaks for its summer holiday in late July. There is the possiblity the decision could be challenged through a Judicial Review but only on the grounds that due process had not been followed.
See our newsletter below with a snappy summary of the Inquiry - https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:3e1fe6a2-b2b0-4ba7-b970-db6d7563fe81
The remainder of the information about the Public INquiry has been moved to our LONDON CITY PUBLIC INQUIRY PAGE. It includes videos, links to key evidence, and a full explnation of the Inquiry - why it took place, who were the key players etc.
Still on this page, though, are the details of the consultations which took place prior to the Inquiry
a short summary of the proposals before the INQUIRY AND HOW THEY HAVE CHANGED OVER THE YEARS
Our short briefing charts the somewhat complex journey from expansion proposals took from when they first emerged in 2019. They have changed over the years. This briefing should make it easier to follow the twists and turns that took place, detailed on this page and in the archives. In fact it acts as a summary.
Read the briefing: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:e7ec6ee3-a535-4746-a9a0-fc59e51134fe
HACAN East’s Official Response to the Consultation
fOR MAIN POINTS OF THE CONSULTATION
Scroll down this page or check out
Consultation Poster
http://www.hacaneast.org.uk/new-page-34
Our guide to responding to the consultation:
http://www.hacaneast.org.uk/new-page-61
and
CONSULTATION KEY POINTS EXPLAINED
NEWHAM LAUNCHES FORMAL CONSULTATION INTO cITY EXPANSION PLANS
Newham Council, the planning authority, has formally started consulting on London City’s expansion proposals
The consultation runs from15th February to 17th March.
Newham’s Planning Committee will then later this year decide whether or not to approve the proposals.
The detailed application is on Newham’s website:
It is long, long, long!
We summarise the key points below:
What London City is asking for:
An extra 6 - 7 hours flying on Saturday
At present no flights are permitted between 12.30pm on Saturdays and 12.30pm on Sundays. London City proposes for flights on Saturday to end at 6.30pm (7.30pm in summer).
An extra 2.5 million passengers a year using to the airport
London City plans to increase passenger numbers from 6.5m to 9m a year
Extra early morning flights
London City plans 3 extra flights during the first hour of operation, from 6.30 – 7am.
It is not proposing to:
Introduce to introduce night flights
Lift the cap of 111,000 allowed to use the airport each year
It will only allow ‘quieter’, cleaner planes during the extended hours
LONDON CITY AIRPORT SCALES BACK GROWTH PLANS
London City Airport today announced it has scaled back its expansion proposals following a consultation earlier this year.
It has:
· Reduced the hours it proposed to fly on Saturdays
· Cut back on the number of extra flights allowed in the early morning
· Abandoned plans for late evening flying
The airport will now submit a formal application to Newham Council, the planning Authority. Newham will carry out a formal consultation before masking a decision.
At present no flights are permitted between 12.30pm on Saturdays and 12.30pm on Sundays. In the consultation London City had proposed all-day flying on Saturdays. The plan now is for flights on Saturday to end at 6.30pm (7.30pm at the height of summer).
The airport proposed six extra flights during the first hour of operation, from 6.30am – 7am. That has been scaled back to three additional flights.
Airlines will be required to use new, quieter aircraft on Saturday afternoons.
The plans to increase passenger numbers from 6.5m to 9m a year remain but there are no plans to lift the annual cap of 111,000 or to operate night flights.
The airport will now submit a formal application to Newham Council, the planning Authority. Newham will carry out a formal consultation before making a decision.
London City Growth Proposals
On July 1st London City published it proposals for growth. They are out for consultation until September 9th. If, following the consultation, London City decide to proceed with them, there will need to be a formal consultation by the London Borough of Newham, the planning authority. London City aims to have its new plans in place by 2024.
The details of the plans, plus details of the consultation and of the exhibitions, can be found on the airport’s website at https://consultation.londoncityairport.com/
In summary, these are the key proposals:
an increase in annual passenger limit from 6.5 million to 9 million;
getting rid of the current curfew on flights (12.30pm Saturday – 12.30pm Sunday) to allow flying on a Saturday afternoon and evening - there will be no change to the current operating hours on Sunday, with no flights before 12.30 pm;
An increase in the number of flights permitted between 06:30 and 06:59, from 6 to 12
‘more flexibility’ for delayed departures and arrivals in the last half hour of operations each day (10pm – 10.30pm) – they are currently limited to 400 per year;
only the cleaner, quieter planes will be allowed during the additional hours of operation – London City believes this will act as an incentive for airlines to renew their fleet so these aircraft become the norm at all times. These planes are larger which allows London City to seek to increase annual passenger numbers but not the total number of flights.
What is not changing:
The 8 hour night ban will remain (10.30pm – 6.30am)
The current annual cap of 111,000 flights will remain – London City seems to have dropped, certainly for now, the proposal in its Masterplan to seek to increase it to 151,000.
No increase at parking at the airport.
Comment on the Proposals
End of Weekend Respite
The proposal to permit flights after 12.30pm on Saturdays ends the valued weekend break from the flights and the noise which has existed since the airport opened more than 30 years ago. It was brought in because so many people live so close to the airport. City has given no indication of the number of aircraft there will be during this additional 9.5 hour period. Will it be 5 an hour? Could it be up to 45 an hour?
More Early morning and Late Evening Flights
These are the times when people tend to be most sensitive to the noise from the flights.
‘Quieter’ Planes
These planes will be noticeably quieter but only on departure and only within about 4 miles from the airport. The difference is negligible elsewhere.
No Link with Flight Path Changes
London City is currently revising its flights paths. It will be a long process. Consultation not expected until late 2023/early 2024, with the new flight paths not in place until 2027. The timescale for the growth proposals is shorter. But no link has been made between the growth proposals and the flight path changes.
Consultation Exhibitions Poorly Advertised
The details are on London’s City’s website but, so far, there is no indication of a widespread publicity campaign. And no exhibitions are planned for some key overflown boroughs such as Havering, Southwark and Lambeth.
The Consultation Response Form is Poor
It seeks to collect views on many things not directly connected to this consultation while not asking some key questions about its proposals, such as whether you back Saturday afternoon and evening flying. If you do not wish to fill it in you can email London City directly with your comments: londoncityairport@cratus.co.uk
SEE BLOW OUR GUIDE TO FILLING IN THE CONSULTATION DOCUMENT
Some more general facts and figures
London City was opened in the late 1980s, primarily as a business airport to serve Dockland and the City of London. It was never envisaged that it would become a significant leisure airport. Yet the drive behind these growth proposals is to attract more leisure passengers. It impacts more people than any other airport in the UK, except Heathrow and Manchester. By 2025 London City forecasts it will be over 200,000. People are disturbed from Havering and Bexley in the east to Lambeth in the west. London City aircraft fly over some of the most densely-populated and poorest areas in the UK. Many people have no option but to remain under the flight path.