‘Stonewalled’: Documents show why there’s no point complaining about flight paths

A manual on how to deal with feedback on aircraft noise has revealed staff are told to put time limits on phone calls from people who complain too often and delete their emails.

A manual instructing staff on how to deal with complaints about plane noise has revealed the public is being deliberately stonewalled, a community group says.

The manual instructs the seven Airservices Australia (ASA) staff tasked with handling all of the country’s aircraft noise complaints to not bother reading emails from people who lodge repeated complaints.

They are instructed to tell repeat complainants to call or email ASA no more than once a month.

And if a member of the public continues to lodge complaints, staff can put them on a “management plan’’.

Brisbane residents rallying outside Brisbane Airport Corporation against fight noise last year. Picture: Tara Croser

That allows staff to put time limits on calls, delete further submissions without reading them and refuse to answer questions that have previously been answered.

After a previous revamp of Brisbane’s flight paths led to Tingalpa’s Charles Bill lodging a fresh complaint every time a plane flew over his house, ASA changed its record-keeping rules.

Since then, repeated complaints from one person are officially counted as a single complaint.

But an ASA spokeswoman said it took all feedback “very seriously’’ and was “committed to continuous improvement’’.

“Our commitment is to ensure our engagement with communities who may be affected by aircraft noise and changes to flight paths and airspace is proactive, open, and transparent,’’ she said.

“Airservices is working with industry and community to pursue all opportunities to minimise aircraft noise in communities under Brisbane Airport flight paths.’’

Noise complaints have jumped since Brisbane’s second runway opened in July, 2020, when new flight paths saw many more planes overfly inner-ring suburbs.

Federal Transport Minister Barnaby Joyce responded two months ago by revealing details of a 12-month trial where more planes would be diverted over Moreton Bay to limit noise.

Aircraft would also have to hit higher altitudes at departure and follow stricter flight path rules.

Brisbane Flight Path Community Alliance, which obtained the ASA community complaints manuals through Freedom of Information requests, claimed they showed the public was being stonewalled.

BFPCA chairman David Diamond said it was clear ASA’s strategy was to fob off people with pre-scripted answers until they gave up in frustration.

“Suggested replies include ‘this cannot be changed’, ‘investigations already (have been) conducted’, ‘no investigation will be conducted’,” he said.

“It’s designed to quash complaints and prevent (complaints) from progressing to investigation or referral (to other regulators),’’ he said.

Brisbane Flight Path Community Alliance chairman David Diamond said the ASA complaints manual showed the public was being deliberately stonewalled. Picture: Annette Dew

“In Senate Estimates, Airservices has been described as nothing more than an ‘information and data logging service’.

“The airport and federal MPs keep telling people to complain to Airservices, but we now know noise complaints to Airservices go nowhere.’’

Toowong resident Mitchell, who did not want his last name used, said he first wrote to ASA early last year but still has not received an answer to his question — why isn’t there a curfew or a flight path change?

“They sent me a five-page response which was very technical, with stuff about plane heights, noise monitoring, operating procedures,’’ he said.

“So I wrote back and told them they had not actually answered my question.

“They replied that curfews weren’t their responsibility, but never told me whose it was.’’

He then wrote to his local MP, who referred him to Brisbane Airport Corporation, who told him to contact ASA.

Mr Diamond said BFPCA had therefore set up its own online complaints reporting process, at: bfpca.org.au/complain

“Using this link enables communities to bypass the biased and negligent Airservices complaints process by emailing their complaints directly to the Minister for Transport Barnaby Joyce,’’ he said.

Complaints were also forwarded to Shadow Minister for Transport Catherine King, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, the CEO of Airservices, the CEO of Brisbane Airport Corporation, the CEO and Chair of the Queensland Investment Corporation

and the Aircraft Noise Ombudsman.

The FOI documents and a detailed report can be found at: bfpca.org.au/ncis