Today is International Day for the Ban on Night Flights at Airports

130 initiatives from 15 countries have declared 13 September as the “International Day for the Ban on Night Flights at Airports”.

International Day for the Ban on Night Flights at Airports

The declaration signed by the initiatives states:

Take-offs and landings during the night are an unreasonable burden with particularly harmful health consequences for all people in the vicinity of airports. They are unnecessary and avoidable.

Most of the initiatives are resident’s groups affected by flights at airports such as Frankfurt, Athens, Nantes or Gatwick, and are part of the global network Stay Grounded. You can find your local initiative here.

Fernando Ciria, an affected resident from the Madrid Barajas airport, said:

Every night there is a trail of planes flying over our houses. It is impossible to rest, we wake up every few minutes. Despite our complaints, airlines always finds justifications for operating flights at night. We are very disappointed.

They say the damage caused by these flights to health and the climate crisis is disproportionate to any alleged necessity of take-offs and landings at night and call for an immediate end to night flights at airports. This of course still allows for exceptions, such as medical emergencies.

Air traffic noise is associated with a variety of serious health problems. The most critical of these include heart disease, diabetes, cognitive impairment, especially in children, as well as mental health issues like depression. One study estimates that night-time aircraft noise near Frankfurt airport has led to 2,340 hospitalisations and 340 deaths per year.

Magdalena Heuwieser, spokesperson for the Stay Grounded network said:

Improved operational practices and technologies in aircraft will not be enough to solve the issue of aviation’s noise and health impacts. It is essential to reduce flights, especially night flights.

Moving forwards, the local and international groups will be taking action every 13 September to highlight the damage night flights cause.

Featured image via the Canary