BFPCA Calls for Stronger Action as Minister’s Direction Falls Short

BFPCA Media Statement, 18 September 2024

Key Highlights

• Minister King’s new directive to Airservices is a watered-down version of her original promise to re-instate SODPROPS, which allows more flights over water, as the preferred 24/7 operation mode at Brisbane Airport.
• BFPCA notes Minister King’s acknowledgement of the distress caused by excessive aircraft noise in more than 220 suburbs across Greater Brisbane.
• The 2006 Brisbane Airport MDP/EIS clearly stated that SODPROPS (over water operations) should be the “preferred mode” for noise abatement, but Airservices quietly removed this as the priority mode without consultation prior to the 2020 launch.
• Instead of fully reinstating 24/7 SODPROPS, the Minister’s direction today merely asks Airservices to extend its use, a measure BFPCA believes will be severely limited by operational conditions.
• Recent data highlights that SODPROPS use during the day has been almost non-existent, with only 1 daytime SODPROPS flight between July and August 2024, compared to 16,273 non-SODPROPS flights.

Brisbane, 18 September 2024 – Brisbane Flight Path Community Alliance (BFPCA) cautiously welcomes the Ministerial Direction issued by The Hon Catherine King MP, which acknowledges the severe disruption caused by aircraft noise to families and communities in more than 220 suburbs across Greater Brisbane. While the Minister refers to “frustration,” BFPCA points to the extensive health harms, including chronic sleep deprivation and stress, that residents endure due to the ongoing noise pollution from Brisbane’s flawed flight path design. This has already prompted Airservices to set up a dedicated mental health and suicide counselling hotline (1300 687 327) for Brisbane communities affected by Brisbane’s flight path noise.

The Minister’s Direction orders Airservices Australia to extend the use of Simultaneous Opposite Direction Parallel Runway Operations (SODPROPS), prioritising over-water operations. While this is a step in the right direction, it is a watered down version of her original promise and falls short of fully addressing the root cause of the noise problem.

Back in 2006, the Brisbane Airport MDP/EIS specified that SODPROPS was to be the “preferred mode” for noise abatement, as it offers the greatest relief to communities under the flight paths. However, before the launch of Brisbane’s new parallel runway in 2020, Airservices quietly removed SODPROPS from daytime operations, significantly increasing noise over residential areas without any consultation or government oversight.

Rather than reinstating SODPROPS as the default mode for operations 24/7, the Minister’s direction merely asks Airservices to “extend” its use. This measure is limited by meteorological and operational conditions, and recent data demonstrates just how rare SODPROPS operations have been. Between July and August 2024, only one daytime SODPROPS flight was recorded, while there were 16,273 non-SODPROPS daytime flights. Night-time operations fared slightly better, with 109 SODPROPS flights out of 1,707 total night-time flights, but this still means that for every 1 SODPROPS flight, 16 non-SODPROPS flights disturb Brisbane communities at night.

BFPCA also notes that the ongoing shortage of air traffic controllers may further reduce the ability of Airservices to extend SODPROPS use, raising doubts about the effectiveness of the Minister’s directive.

While the November 2024 implementation deadline is a positive step, BFPCA urges stronger action such as flight caps, a night-time curfew, and a total re-design of the flawed flight paths.

Quotes Attributable to Prof. Marcus Foth, Chairperson of BFPCA

“Minister King’s new directive to Airservices is a watered-down version of her original promise to reinstate SODPROPS as the preferred 24/7 operation mode at Brisbane Airport, which would allow more flights over water and provide real noise relief to communities.”

“We welcome the Minister’s recognition of the significant distress caused to communities across Greater Brisbane, but we must remind her that this is not just ‘frustration’—it is a serious public health issue, with thousands of residents suffering from chronic sleep deprivation and stress due to the excessive noise pollution. Setting up a suicide hotline is not going to fix this issue.”

“The original 2006 MDP/EIS clearly stated that SODPROPS was to be the preferred mode for operations, as it offers the greatest noise abatement. Instead of fully reinstating this mode, the Minister is merely asking Airservices to please try and extend its use, which we believe will have limited impact given operational constraints.”

“Recent data shows that daytime SODPROPS operations are virtually non-existent. In August 2024, only one daytime SODPROPS flight was recorded out of 16,000+ total flights, with the majority of flights being routed over people’s homes. This is not good enough. Brisbane deserves better.”

About BFPCA

With the launch of Brisbane Airport’s New Parallel Runway on 12 July 2020 came a new airspace design and flight paths that concentrate aircraft noise over densely populated residential areas.

Brisbane Airport and Airservices Australia sold this project to Brisbane communities suggesting the New Parallel Runway will enable them to prioritise “over water” operations that direct planes away from residential areas. The CEO Gert-Jan de Graaff is on the record saying, “the net effect of aircraft flying over the city will decrease.”

Brisbane families and communities are suffering from excessive noise pollution and associated health and related impacts from Brisbane Airport’s new flight paths launched in July 2020. The Aircraft Noise Ombudsman report, the Brisbane Airport PIR Advisory Forum (BAPAF) and flight path design consultants TRAX International have all confirmed that Brisbane communities were misled using flawed noise modelling, deceiving community engagement, and offered inadequate noise abatements.

Brisbane Flight Path Community Alliance (BFPCA) came together in 2020 to fight back on behalf of all Brisbane families and communities experiencing this noise pollution.

For more background information, visit: https://bfpca.org.au/