The arrival of the A380 - the world’s largest passenger aircraft, which produces half the noise of its nearest rival when taking off* - is another milestone in the move to host quieter aircraft at Heathrow.
Heathrow continues to encourage the introduction of new, quieter aircraft by charging them lower landing fees and developing infrastructure such as stands and taxiways to accommodate larger aircraft like A380s. The airport already hosts twelve A380s, and expects to have approximately thirty A380s and approximately sixty B787s by 2020. Strict noise limits at the airport also mean that airlines generally use their quietest aircraft around 15 per cent more on Heathrow routes.
Matt Gorman, Heathrow’s Sustainability Director, says: ‘We are delighted to welcome British Airways’ first Airbus A380 to Heathrow. This type of aircraft, along with innovative operational procedures and tough operational restrictions mean that fewer people are affected by noise from Heathrow today than at any time since the 1970s, even though the number of flights has almost doubled.’
Heathrow recently published ‘A quieter Heathrow’, a report setting out Heathrow’s commitments to reducing aircraft noise while safeguarding the UK’s connectivity. The report sets out the core areas of focus for tackling aircraft noise: quieter planes, quieter operating procedures, noise mitigation and land-use planning, operating restrictions and working with local communities.
The report also sets out a range of new commitments on noise which include publicly ranking airlines on ‘noise performance’, trialling new departure routes with NATS and proposing a significant increase in fines for airlines that break noise limits.
Further information about Heathrow’s commitments to reducing aircraft noise while safeguarding the UK’s connectivity can be found in ‘A quieter Heathrow’: http://www.heathrowairport.com/static/Heathrow_Noise/Downloads/PDF/a_quieter_heathrow_2013.pdf
An infographic which summarises how Heathrow reduces the impact of noise can be found at:
http://mediacentre.heathrowairport.com/ImageLibrary/downloadmedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=1519&SizeId=-1
*From Airbus website: ‘The A380 carries 42% more passengers than the 747-400 but produces half the noise energy when taking off; and three to four times less noise energy when landing.’
http://www.airbus.com/fileadmin/media_gallery/files/brochures_publications/aircraft_families/A380_new_generation_new_experience_leaflet.pdf (p.8)
