Constructive recommendation brings Deurne airport nearer to a brand new licence, however: no flights earlier than 7am

The earlier environmental allow for Deurne airport expired on 17 June. This isn’t an issue for the airport, as a result of it submitted a file on time with a request for a brand new license. Flemish Setting Minister Zuhal Demir (N-VA) should determine by August 10 whether or not the airport will obtain a brand new license or not.

Demir has not been in a position to decide but as a result of the recommendation of the GOVC has not been acquired. However from Thursday evening, that recommendation has been accessible within the Setting Desk. The GOVC advises the minister to grant a brand new license to the airport if sure situations are met.

Contracts

A shocking scenario is that the airport might not enable flights earlier than 7 am any more. Now TUI Fly typically departs early within the morning from Deurne. For instance, on Friday there’s a flight to Ibiza at 6.40am. In response to the GOVC, these early flights must be banned. Flights wouldn’t be allowed to depart or arrive from 7am.

There’s something to oppose that. Right this moment, flights which might be scheduled to reach earlier than 11pm however will solely arrive in Deurne after 11pm resulting from delays need to switch to a different airport. The GOVC advises that these flights will land at Deurne after 11pm.

“On the entire, I feel that is honest recommendation. It meets each the desires of the airport and the desires of operational teams.”

Luke De Wilde

Airport professional

One other contract that the committee desires to place in place is to construct a sound wall between the airport and Het Land Van Nu main faculty on Boekenberglei. The airport itself proposed this sound wall as an choice in its allow software.

The GOVC additionally desires the airport to ban ‘contact and go’ flights from 2pm on Saturday evenings in June, July and August. These are flights by which pilots throughout coaching contact the bottom and take off once more instantly. They discover ways to rapidly restart after a profitable touchdown. These ‘contact and go’ flights often contain quite a lot of noise air pollution. Different coaching journeys might proceed on Saturday afternoon.

“General, I feel that is honest recommendation,” replied airport professional Luk De Wilde. “It meets the will of the airport and the will of useful teams.”

Anyway, complain

If the minister follows the recommendation, there will likely be complaints anyway. For instance, an motion group similar to Vliegerplein has been calling for the closure of Deurne airport for years. In response to the residents’ motion, the airport must be was a park space. The motion complains, amongst different issues, that the airport is situated in a densely populated residential space, inflicting noise and odor disturbance to native residents and a higher danger of well being injury.

READ IN. 300 paper complaints filed in opposition to Antwerp Airport license renewal: “1000’s of individuals have additionally signed a web based criticism”

The airport, then again, argues that the noise of the brand new Embraer 195 E2 plane with which TUI Fly has been flying from Deurne since final yr carries fifty % much less noise than the earlier plane . And that CO2 emissions per seat are 33 % decrease than with earlier TUI Fly plane, due to technical adjustments to the engines and aerodynamics.

Assuming {that a} new Flemish authorities is not going to be fashioned instantly, Minister Demir should now determine who will win the day.

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