Night flying restrictions

A ban on night flights is a defined by law, regulation or limited approval authorities ban for pollution control of the population against aircraft noise. However overflights remain unaffected.

Usually exceptions for rescue flights and sovereign air traffic for politicians, police and military. Some cases there are exceptions for cargo and mail flights.

Night bans are in most cases night flight restrictions for certain aircraft or flight tasks, rarely exclusive prohibitions. The definition of night flight corresponds only approximately to the concept of darkness. This results in the problem of noise pollution in the night hours.

Justifications

The noise caused by take-offs and landings may carry significant health risks for residents. This is due to the particular disorder of endocrine stress hormones, especially cortisol, as can also be seen as a long-term consequence for general insomnia or shift work. The example of the Cologne-Bonn airport has been demonstrated in an epidemiological study of how aircraft noise is reflected in some individuals in increased drug consumption. However, adverse health effects of the size and frequency of sound events is dependent.

The German Medical Assembly in May 2012 called for a comprehensive protection of the public from aircraft noise, in particular the protection of the night's sleep. The noise limits of the law would have to be corrected from the perspective of doctors down significantly. The doctors emphasize that preventable health problems and diseases are caused by aircraft noise. For aircraft noise caused by diseases, there would be additional medical costs.

Situation in Germany

The existing air operation in Germany main legal bases are the Aviation Act and the Law on Protection against aircraft noise by 1971. From two provisions can not legally defined " night flight ban" derived from the results in a "right to sleep " or noise.

However, there is limited operating license but may allow the operation of ambulance and rescue flights and postal and courier flights and the use of aircraft with quieter engines for many German airports during the night hours.

At Frankfurt airport the night flight ban was not a condition of the new north-west runway, the average nightly flight movements between 22.00 and 6.00 clock clock but were limited in the zoning decision on 150 per night. By judgment of 4 April 2012, the Federal Administrative Court ruled that the scheme is partially defective in weighing up and laid down a general ban on night flights for the core night between 23.00 and 5.00 clock clock.

At the Cologne / Bonn airport are only aircraft in accordance with Chapter 3 bonus list allows. That is, however, only that the aircraft relative to its maximum takeoff weight is slightly less noisy than allow the boundaries of the Chapter 3 certification. The bonus list is therefore not a measure of the absolute volume of the aircraft, but only for the relative volume.

At Leipzig / Halle Airport closed between 23:30 clock to 05:30 clock only cargo and courier flights are permitted, and 30 minutes after the beginning and before the end of the night flight restriction also delays / early arrivals of passenger flights.

For with the construction of the airport Berlin Brandenburg Brandenburg citizens trying to obtain a ban on night flights. In the period from 4 June to 3 December 2012, on 100,000 voters have done in the official entry points her signature on a petition to this effect. This was thus the first successful referendum in this state. In Berlin selbiges project has failed.

The proposed by the Federal Cabinet on 25 May 2005 draft amendment to the Law on Protection against aircraft noise also does not contain any legal basis for a legal ban on night flights in Germany.

Environmental organizations, such as the Traffic Club Germany (VCD), call for a general nationwide ban on night flights bis 22 clock clock 6, the protection of public health against noise.