AIRCRAFT campaigners are today urging people to make sure their voice is heard over the proposals to create noisy new flightpaths over Suffolk.And they are warning people to remember that while air traffic now may seem bearable, in just a few years it could triple with a second runway at Stansted and an extra one at Heathrow.

AIRCRAFT campaigners are today urging people to make sure their voice is heard over the proposals to create noisy new flightpaths over Suffolk.

And they are warning people to remember that while air traffic now may seem bearable, in just a few years it could triple with a second runway at Stansted and an extra one at Heathrow.

Observers say already 1,200 planes a day fly over the county - up to 600 of those at various heights over the Felixstowe area, the Clapham junction of the skies.

Under the new proposals, new stacking areas for Stansted will be created between Ipswich and Stowmarket and south of Newmarket, creating new motorways of the sky across the county.

The Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) campaign is urging all who are affected by proposals to change the airspace arrangements for the region to make clear their views to NATS (National Air Traffic Services) before the May 22 deadline.

The group says the NATS proposals will provide relief from overflying for some but many others will be severely affected as flightpaths shift and greater concentrations of noise occur because of precision navigation, in some cases over currently tranquil areas.

“It is important for everyone to grasp how they would be affected by the airspace change proposals, whether for better or worse, and to make representations,” said Martin Peachey, who chairs SSE's noise working group.

“But more broadly, people need to take on board that a much grimmer picture could emerge if plans to build a second runway at Stansted were to be allowed, tripling aircraft movements to higher levels than at Heathrow today, since this consultation from NATS only covers operations on its single runway.

“Tackling the root cause of additional aircraft noise by opposing the planning application for a second runway at Stansted is therefore essential.”

SSE has published on its web site helpful guidance about the proposed changes and maps to show where planes are likely to go in the future.

Concern is growing over the proposed changes with many people suggesting the passenger plane stacks should be repositioned over the sea, and flightpaths should be designed so they can be moved a few miles north and south on a regular basis to give people relief from the noise.

Do you think more passenger planes should be allowed to fly over Suffolk? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN, or e-mail EveningStarLetters@eveningstar.co.uk