British Airways has reportedly proposed an initiative to make aircraft land on a different part of Heathrow’s runway, in an effort to reduce noise for residents living nearby.
The plan, revealed today in The Times newspaper, would mean planes flying 140 feet higher across London and landing further down the runway; the carrier has reportedly calculated that such a move would reduce noise levels for 65,000 people.
In addition, some 3,000 people in west London would no longer have to put up with noise levels of 57 decibels or more – the level deemed to cause “serious annoyance”, the newspaper reports.
The proposal, which The Times says is a way of “mitigating the impact” of the 2008 opening of the airport’s Terminal 5, would involve planes landing 880 yards further along the main runway.
This would leave planes 3,140 yards in which to stop; The Times reports that a fully-laden Boeing 747 requires 2,850 yards to stop – including a 20 per cent “overlap” for landing in wet or slippery conditions. The carrier has reportedly been in talks with Heathrow’s owner BAA regarding the plan.
Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad
