§ Mr. John Mooreasked the Secretary of State for Trade in the cases of the 2,556 aircraft that exceeded the permitted noise limit on take-off at Heathrow: (a) what action was taken by his Department, (b) in what time bands these violations occurred, and (c) what were the reasons given by the airlines concerned.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisIn all cases the airline concerned is notified of the infringement. In cases where the infringement is in excess of 2 PNdB—1,169 out of the total of 2,556—an explanation is requested from the airline. The infringements are spread throughout the 24 hours, 2,283 occurring between 0700 hrs. and 2300 hrs. and 273 between 2300 hrs. and 0700 hrs. Infringements may be caused by a variety of factors, namely, excessive takeoff weight, piloting error, wind speed and 479W direction, air turbulence, weather conditions and air traffic control requirements. My Department maintains a continuous dialogue with airlines in an effort to eliminate avoidable causes for infringements.