Planes are getting quieter, the government says

The Civil Aviation Bill, to be debated in the Lords on Wednesday, would remove the cap on the "number of occasions" when aircraft can take off or land.

But, the government says, quieter modern planes means more stringent noise limits can be set.

Opponents argue that more night flights will mean more disturbance.

Lower noise caps

Heathrow is allowed 2,550 take-offs and landings to take place between 11.30pm and 6am during the six-month "winter season".

This averages out at about 16 a night.

The airport is also subject to a cap on the cumulative amount of noise - the number of flights multiplied by the noise created by each plane.

Under the government's plans, the noise cap would be lowered slightly but that on the number of flights would disappear.

A Transport Department spokesman said quieter, modern planes would allow more take-offs and landings to happen, while reducing disturbance to residents living under the flight path.

Individual jets create 75% less noise than was once the case, the government argues.

If the bill passes into law, restrictions on the number of night flights to Heathrow would end in about five years' time.

But Conservative and Liberal Democrat peers are proposing that the cap is reinstated when the legislation returns to the Lords on Wednesday.

Edward Lister, Tory leader of Wandsworth Council, which is under the Heathrow flight path, told the BBC News website: "The government keeps arguing that quieter plans means we can have more flights.

"But it only takes one plane to wake you up at four o'clock in the morning. If there's another almost straight away afterwards, you won't get back to sleep.