At a meeting on Monday 28th November between the Aviation Minister, John Redwood MP and Adam Afriyie MP, with representatives for Dr Lee and Michael Gove also present, John Redwood suggested the following:
1. The Minister to talk to NATs about the 2014 changes to the Compton Gate which were made without consultation, with a view to switching back to the pre 2014 pattern.
2. The Minister to encourage NATs and the industry to keep more planes away from built up areas, flying more slowly and saving fuel, so they can come in to land directly without being in a stack.
3. The Minister to encourage use of higher flight paths so planes stay higher for longer, reducing the numbers experiencing noise.
4. The Minister to support measures to promote good flying. This includes later dropping of the wheels, less acute turns and less aggressive use of power on and the flaps. All these measures save fuel as well as reducing noise.
5. The Minister to appoint someone or some organisation to take responsibility to achieve reductions in noise
I look forward to receiving a response from the Minister in due course.