PEOPLE living under the flight path of a nearby airport claim noise levels are “soaring” out of control.
At a meeting of Blacon Community Forum residents and councillors expressed growing concerns about noise caused by aircraft using Hawarden (Chester) Airport.
They said there has been an increase in planes flying low and more frequently over the large housing estate in recent months, including late at night.
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Phil Boden, of Oakfield Road, said: “Just last night I heard two planes come within minutes of each other. A police helicopter landed at about 12.21am, then after that this other plane came in at 12.30am.“A few years ago it was not that bad. Now RAF Valley come once a month with three or four Hawk trainers, which land and take off then land again. The airport has a contract with the jumbo-size Airbus cargo planes, which are increasing in numbers all the time. We notice what we think are executive planes now flying in every morning from Germany and France.
“Police use the airport and it never seems to stop. When I first moved to Blacon there were no weekend flights, now we get them both Saturday and Sunday.”
The 54-year-old added: “I used to live in Lincolnshire near the airport and there we were entitled to secondary glazing on the windows and extra thick loft insulation. It would be nice if they gave that to us but that would be expensive and probably put them out of business. They have done this all under the table.”
Mr Boden, a former RAF pilot, said: “It would also be nice to know if they had a disaster plan in place. The bigger airports in Manchester and Heathrow all have disaster plans, but I don’t think they have one here.
“If one of those big planes were to crash, it would be a really really bad situation. We have a right to know as residents.”
Cllr Marie Nelson, who also lives in the Blacon area, said: “It has become quite obvious there are a lot more planes, and some of them are really quite noisy. It is very noticeable now. Last week two went in, one right after the other. Things have really changed over the years.
“It is causing a lot of noise problems, so that is something we as councillors will certainly take up.
“We want to contact the airport to find out what’s going on.”
Cllr Carolyn Graham, who also represents the Blacon ward, said: “This is the first time the noise has been brought to our attention. Last night it was very evident there are more planes overhead. It would be great if it gives residents advantages like free extra glazing on their windows.
“We have put this issue in on our action points.
“We are going to find out who to talk to and see exactly what the situation is at the moment and what, if anything, they can provide to make it a better situation for local residents. If they have increased flights without consultation we will be upset.”
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