Birmingham Airport MOSUN Flightpath
News Update 5th December 2019
MOSUN: As CRS members will know, the Airport gained CAA approval to their application to expand the operation of the MOSUN flightpath over Edgbaston and Harborne. However, the Ministry of Defence objected to weekday daytime flight departures using MOSUN, as they said it would interfere with the operational needs of RAF Brize Norton. So the use of the MOSUN flightpath remains restricted as before. But we would urge residents to continue to let us know about any flights which they have found to be too easy, too low, or otherwise causing a nuisance, so that we can follow this up with the Airport. Please email us with any concerns . The Airport will continue to seek approval for daytime use, and CRS will continue to monitor any such action.
AIRPORT SUSTAINABILITY CONSULTATION: The Airport has just published its Sustainability Strategy, outlining recent achievements and future aims to ensure it remains a responsible neighbour and reduces its environmental impact. Details of this can be found here – the strategy includes the Airport’s approach to noise, use of energy, transport within the airport, and also public transport access. As well as local air quality, waste, water, biodiversity and climate change mitigation and adaptation. The Airport has asked for any comments on its Strategy to be sent to them by email. If any CRS member intends to reply to the Airport with any comments/concerns, it would be very helpful if CRS could be copied in via our email account.
The Society has become actively involved in the MOSUN flightpath – see diagram below – which flies over Edgbaston and Harborne.
Since the Airport announced in June 2017 that it intended to formalise the existing flightpath over our communities which could increase the number of flights, the Society submitted its views to the Airport, The City Council and the CAA.
In February 2019, the CAA gave approval to the MOSUN flightpath and it became fully operational on 23rd May 2019.
During the consultation process, we have expressed our deep concern at the poor consultation with local residents. As a result, we have now secured direct meetings with the Airport to discuss the MOSUN flightpath, and the number of flights and noise impacts.
It would help us if you could report any instances of noisy planes giving wherever possible date, time and description. This will enable us to report to the Airport and build a picture of impacts.
We have also sought closer involvement with the Airport Consultative Committee on which Birmingham has three local Councillor representatives, none of which are from the Edgbaston or Harborne Wards unfortunately.
We will continue to monitor and report on this on behalf of residents.
Calthorpe Residents Society Response to the Consultation
Birmingham Airport (BHX) announced on 29th June 2017 its plans to consult on changing the designation of a flightpath known as “MOSUN” from a “non-designated” route to a “designated “route.
This consultation period for this flightpath was due to end on 9th October, and has since been extended twice – to the 9th November and finally to the 16th November. These extensions have been granted by BHX following pressure from local Cllrs and the Edgbaston MP about the poor quality of community consultation with the Edgbaston, Harborne and Quinton communities. This anger locally was clearly shown at the 16th October consultation meeting.
This statement below provides an analysis of the impact of the flightpath consultation as it affects Edgbaston, Harborne and surrounding areas. This is a Calthorpe Residents Society (CRS) response agreed by its Committee on 7th September 2017.
For a .pdf copy of the paper, please see CRS Response to Birmingham Airport MOSUN Flightpath Consultation.
This is a statement agreed by the CRS Committee following consideration of the issues raised by the consultation process and the information provided. There are a number of key issues, which, in the Committee’s view, have not been taken into account by BHX in assessing the impact of designating the MOSUN flightpath as a “standard” route for departures.
There are four key issues, which are detailed further in this response:
- Throughout this consultation period, there has been a great deal of confusion about information released by BHX on the number of flights forecast to use MOSUN. This is especially concerning in regards to the suggested huge variation in flights over our area – ranging from 500 in 2016 to proposals of between 2000 and 7500 by 2023!
- But what is also of concern is that BHX are not consulting on the longer-term impact of MOSUN beyond 2023. BHX have an approved 2030 Master Plan, which shows a potential growth in total BHX traffic. This could well result in the number of flights via MOSUN being in excess of 15,000. BHX are now preparing their 2045 Master Plan, which may well show an even greater growth in flights (possibly up to 22,000?). BHX will not be consulting on this new plan till Spring 2018.
- In addition no alternatives for a flightpath to the line proposed for this MOSUN flightpath have been considered to take traffic away from our sensitive communities, due to the BHX view that MOSUN was an “established” route.
- In addition, there is a complete lack of explanation and an absence of an environmental (noise, pollution/air quality, etc) impact assessment on the impact of MOSUN as new “standard” route. Given that the MOSUN flightpath will take approx 70/75% of the residential communities affected by BHX departures and covers one of the greatest concentrations of essential health facilities in the West Midlands, and flies over some 20+ schools and 2 university campuses and a statutory SSSI (Edgbaston Pool), this is of enormous concern.
It is therefore the view of the CRS Committee that this consultation has been poorly designed and flawed in conception from the outset. The attached statement sets down our further reasons and evidence for coming to this conclusion on the basis of prematurity, inadequate consultation and absence of a detailed impact assessment.
Calthorpe Residents Society Committee
9 November 2017