Mixed Mode At Heathrow For 6 Weeks

Residents living under Heathrow flight paths will be subjected to additional aircraft noise as of today as the airport runs on a mixed mode basis. This is due to essential repair works being carried out on the Northern runway, that will take an estimated 6 weeks.

Mixed mode is when aircraft lands and takes off on the same runway, normally Heathrow operates an alternate policy where one runway is use for take-off and one used for landing, they switch at 1500 to give residents a break from aircraft noise pollution.

The idea of using mixed-mode on a permanent basis was thrown out recently by the Government as the airport pushed for it to become a permanent feature, however Teresa Villiers the Minister of State for Transport said the benefits of mixed mode were outweighed by the negative effect on the surrounding communities.