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Control of Noise from Civil Aircraft - Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR) Consultation Paper
In August the DETR invited comments on various options for increasing the control of noise from civil aircraft.
The General Aviation Awareness Council (GAAC) welcomed the opportunity to respond to the paper and in its response registered two fundamental conditions which had to be met when considering any new proposals.
First 'bodies with a competence in aviation matters should not relinquish those responsibilities in favour of organisations that have no such competence.' Thus Local authorities should not be given powers currently exercised by the Civil Aviation Authority.
Second 'the CAA must accept noise suppression kits fitted in other JAA countries without further certification by the Authority.' The situation whereby aircraft owners are required to remove satisfactory silencing equipment before the aircraft can be put on the UK register runs counter to common sense and to environmentally friendly operation. Non-acceptance of such equipment would appear to put the UK in breach of EC Regulation 3922/91. It should be noted here that all UK aircraft comply with the requirements of ICAO Annex 16.'
Further points made in the response included:
· The application of noise control arrangements has to be based on accepted standards of noise measurement. These do not exist at present, but the GAAC has sponsored a project to resolve this problem. Details will be available early in 2001.
· In preparing any noise amelioration schemes safe operation must have primacy and must not be jeopardised.
· There is no case for giving having two bodies involved when the licensing of an aerodrome is being considered. As the CAA inspectors will continue to license aerodromes it would complicate matters and confuse if a separate body were to be superimposed to consider environmental factors.
· Local authorities should not be given the power to compel the introduction of that a local authority should not be able to require a non-designated aerodrome to prepare such a compulsory noise abatement scheme.
GAAC
British Light Aviation Centre
50a Cambridge Street
LONDON
SW1V 4QQ
16 October 2000
Press Inquiries to:: 020 7834 5631
