A major government noise study has found that aircraft noise is having a bigger impact on Heathrow communities than previously thought.

The Department for Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority have published two studies looking at the health effects of aircraft noise.

The research found that people living with aircraft noise are more likely to feel annoyed by it.

It showed that 10% of people reported being highly affected at noise levels as low as 43 decibels.

Paul Beckford, Policy Director of the No 3rd Runway Coalition, said: “2.2 million people are set to be impacted by aircraft noise is Heathrow is expanded. That is astronomical. Communities under Heathrow’s flight paths are being forced to bear noise they never chose, with real consequences for their health and sleep. The Government must stop prioritising misguided claims of economic growth over the wellbeing of its citizens.

The evidence is clear: current noise policy is outdated and fails to reflect the true scale of harm. The cost of aviation noise must be recalculated using this latest research and applied rigorously to any proposal to expand or alter Heathrow’s airspace, in line with the balanced approach.”