Survey exposes massive impacts of new Brisbane flight paths

Over 200 people have sought medical help since Brisbane’s new flight paths started and 1400 say they are suffering mental illness.

A father and daughter look on as a Jetstar aircraft passes overhead. Residents in dozens of Brisbane suburbs say plane noise is now a major issue for them. Picture: AAP/Dave Hunt

More than 2000 Brisbane households have described how noise from Brisbane’s new flight paths has ruined their lives.

Their responses have been detailed in a hard-hitting submission to the Aircraft Noise Ombudsman, who is conducting an inquiry into the issue.

Community group Brisbane Fight Path Community Alliance (BFPCA) said it received 2075 responses to its survey, even though it was conducted over only a few weeks during last year’s Christmas holidays.

An orthopaedic surgeon said he was now badly sleep-deprived, more than 200 respondents said they had been forced to seek medical help and about 1400 had suffered some level of mental stress.

The respondents came from more than 30 suburbs across Brisbane, mostly in the inner north and inner south, but as far afield as Upper Brookfield in the westside and Moorooka on the southside.

The new runway. Picture: Glenn Hunt/Getty Images

The overwhelming majority — 94 per cent — said they had no idea noise would be as bad as they were now experiencing.

Many, such as New Farm’s Justin O’Connor, said they knew a second runway was coming but were reassured by Brisbane Airport Corporation’s (BAC’s) own data that they would not be affected.

Mr O’Connor said he and many others had poured their life’s savings into properties thinking they would be fine, only to discover noise was so bad they couldn’t hear televisions or phone conversations when planes flew overhead.

Many respondents reported 100 flights a day, despite BAC saying in its Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the runway that those numbers would not be experienced for years to come.

“I’ve lived here for 12 years. I knew a second runway was coming so we did our due diligence,’’ Mr O’Connor said.

New Farm resident Justin O'Connor said there was no indication from authorities that aircraft noise would be a problem before he bought his New Farm unit. Picture: Renae Droop

“We concluded we would not be impacted, based on what we read on the BAC and Air Services Australia (ASA) websites.

“We looked at their noise footprint projections and their 50-page noise study, but they made absolutely no mention of New Farm.’’

He said part of the problem was planes were banking over the inner north as they lined up with the runway, which meant they had to fire up their engines.

Planes were also using a three degree flight angle on approach, but this was not necessary for safety and four to five degrees was used on approach at many other airports, he claimed.

BAC has conceded “some’’ suburbs including New Farm were more affected than it had predicted, but said other suburbs were experiencing less noise.

However, many of the 2000-plus survey respondents queried how ASA and BAC could have got the actual impact “so badly wrong’’.

SOME OF THE BFPCA SURVEY RESPONSES

- “Some complaints are not answered and my husband called Airservices Australia. Staff were rude and dismissive and it took three phone calls to get someone that listened and was polite.’’

- “Our local councillors, MPs have been trying to help but we are disheartened and depressed at the sheer number of planes that now fly directly over our house when we have never had

planes overhead before!’’

- “I was basically told New Farm residents were consulted, BUT in the 16 years I have lived in the same house in New Farm, there was absolutely no consultation at all. Told to ‘suck it up’ in not so many words...’’

Mr O’Connor said most Brisbane residents accepted a second runway was needed but he said BAC had changed its operating model, which they were told would see the new runway used for flights over Moreton Bay.

“They also said the new runway would be used for growth and expansion, not a 50:50 split operation,’’ he said.

“Aircraft coming from the north are taking off and landing on the new runway, while planes from the south are taking off and landing on the legacy runway.’’

BFPCA has consistently stated since it was set up last year that BAC had not properly consulted with residents under the main flight paths.

Just over 80 per cent of respondents to its survey said they were not “engaged’’ by BAC before the new flight paths became operational.

SOME OF THE BFPCA SURVEY RESPONSES

- “I stumbled across the changes in the news - there was never any direct advice sent to us

explaining Bardon would be affected. Once I saw there were changes coming, a YEAR before

the NPR opened, of course I typed in my address and noticed the planes were going to pass

overhead, but the noise graphic on the website wasn’t anywhere near us so we didn’t think it’d be a problem. But in reality now, the noise has been unbearable.

- “Didn’t think it was going to impact our suburb... I remember Campbell Newman had said the planned runway would extend out over Moreton Bay to reduce the impact on the City of

Brisbane. I can recall seeing a map with the new runway and the new flight path and it was

never going to impact our suburb.’’

About 78 per cent of respondents thought the information and advice from BAC in the lead-up to the new runway opening in July last year was not transparent or accurate

BFPCA chair, David Diamond, said the scale of the response was “telling’’.

“The number of survey responses that a community group of volunteers, with very few resources, was able to achieve demonstrates how BAC’s own engagement, backed by its vast resourcing capability, failed to be robust enough to obtain a proper social license to operate,” Mr Diamond said.

“We’ve been able to hear the experience of 2075 greater Brisbane households – most with more than one person living there – and what they’ve told us is damning.

“An area that we believe was totally neglected in the EIS and in subsequent work by BAC is the impact of aircraft noise on children at school and at home.

“About 37 per cent of all respondents have children living in their homes, and of those an alarming 58 per cent indicated that their children’s behaviour has been negatively impacted by aircraft noise.

“These results have been recorded during a COVID-19 period. We are only at the tip of the iceberg as to how this additional runway and associated flight paths decision will play out negatively impacting the health and lifestyles of many Brisbane residents.’’

To read the full survey visit bfpca.org.au