Overview
Aircraft noise is produced during all phases of flight with more noise being generated during the take-off and landing phases of flight. Areas underneath or near these flight paths will be more exposed to aircraft noise than other areas.
Community concerns associated with aircraft noise therefore often relate to noise generated by individual flights, as well as the location of flight paths and the frequency and the time of day at which flights occur.
Aircraft noise can be described in a number of ways:
Total Noise – The Australian Noise Exposure Forecast (ANEF) is a land use planning tool to manage noise sensitive land uses around major airports, including Sydney Airport. It provides guidance for the NSW Government and local councils to make informed planning and development decisions. The ANEF forecasts total aircraft noise over a year, typically at the end of an airport master plan’s 20-year planning period.
Frequency Based Aircraft Noise – For the community, it is important to know how many times a particular noise level will be exceeded in an area. For this reason, frequency-based measures of aircraft noise are used. Typically, contour maps showing the number of aircraft events louder than 70 dB(A) are used. These are known as N70 contours.
Quiet periods – Many in the community place a high value on having periods of “respite”, that is periods of time when there are no aircraft flying overhead. Respite charts are used to describe these quiet periods.
Night Noise – Residential communities are typically sensitive to noise at night and, for this reason, Sydney Airport has a curfew from 11pm to 6am, during which operations are strictly regulated. Curfew charts are used to describe aircraft noise during the curfew period.
What influences the noise from each aircraft?
The noise generated by an aircraft is influenced by a wide range of factors, including:
- The age, size, and type of aircraft
- Aircraft weight and load factors
- Aircraft thrust settings, speed and altitude
- Airline standard operating procedures
- Weather conditions
What else influences aircraft noise?
In addition to the factors influencing the noise generated by each individual aircraft, total noise is also influenced by:
- The number of flights
- The types of aircraft being flown
- The times of day they fly
- Flight paths being used
What influences where planes fly?
The flight paths used by aircraft arriving or departing from Sydney Airport are determined by Airservices Australia, an agency of the Australian Government.
The flight paths used by jet and non-jet aircraft are shown on the next page and are those used by aircraft in the very early stages of flight (just after take-off) or very late stages of flight (just before landing).
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