BOSSES at Stansted airport today launched a 16-week public consultation on proposals to deal with aircraft noise.

BOSSES at Stansted airport today launched a 16-week public consultation on proposals to deal with aircraft noise.

The airport is tasked with keeping noise from its flights to a minimum - but the rules mainly apply to the towns and villages close to the runway and not people living beneath flightpaths and frustrated by noise in Suffolk.

Stewart Wingate, Stansted airport's managing director, said: “We want to know what people think of our draft plans for the next five years before we finalise them for submission to the government later in 2009.

“Our challenge is to manage the issue of aircraft noise in a pro-active, professional yet sensitive way as we understand it can be a real concern for our local community.

“We're also determined to take appropriate actions to reduce and mitigate against aircraft noise where we can - this is the right and responsible thing to do.”

Stansted is required to publish a five-year noise action plan as part of EU and UK environmental regulations.

Airport head of environment, Dr Andy Jefferson said: “Here at Stansted we pride ourselves on the pro-active way the airport monitors and reports on both aircraft noise and track-keeping.

“We've also worked hard to successfully reduce the impact of aircraft noise as we've developed and grown the airport, and today we have one of the most modern aircraft fleets of any UK airport.

“Aircraft are 75 per cent quieter than they were thirty years ago, and the industry has already set itself the target of a further 50 per cent reduction in 2000 levels by 2020 but we know there is always more we can strive to do.”

As part of the consultation, Stansted has written to individuals and groups across the region, including MPs and council leaders.