A recent complaint filed with the Ombuds Service for Brussels Airport about (night flight) noise nuisance solicited following reaction from the Ombuds Service:  ‘There are solutions to the problem of organizing flights at Brussels Airport without shifting traffic from one side to the other. We advocate a stricter approach especially for integrators (express cargo) and cargo aircraft at Brussels Airport.’ The fleet of passenger aircraft at Brussels Airport is already largely modernized, but in our opinion this is certainly not the case for cargo aircraft, despite the survey that was conducted at the request of DHL. “Sixty-three percent of the cargo aircraft operating at Brussels Airport pre-date 2000. Complaints to our service often refer to night flights or noise pollution from noisy aircraft. We continue to urge further modernizing of the fleet. We also propose to reduce the ceilings of individual aircraft noise quotas allowed during different periods of the day. The individual QC of the aircraft has not changed since 2010, the Airbus A330 did not exist then in a cargo version, nor the Boeing 777. Therefore, it would be high time to review these ceilings. A decrease in noise QC from 8.0 to 6.0 during the night would take the Boeing 767 and the B77L out of night flying at night, as well as the Airbus A300 and A330. And with a QC of 9.0 in the morning, 9.0 in the evening and 12.0 during the day, the much-needed purging of the fleet would take place and the noisy Boeing 747-400 would be kept out.

The Ombuds Service believes that the Boeing 747-400 is not an acceptable aircraft at Brussels Airport from an environmental point of view and has repeatedly pointed this out to the responsible authorities. We also defend, based on the complaints, other points such as :

• Limitation of the annual number of daytime flights allowed at Brussels Airport, no increase in air traffic. Brussels Airport could become an urban daytime airport, operated only between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., with an annual ceiling on flights to be set by the government.
• Phasing out night flights and redefining the night operating period with no traffic from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.
• Imposing take-off from the runway threshold.
• Strict monitoring of possible violations.
• Completion of the noise wall around the airport area, as well as the construction of a closed test hall that not only absorbs engine noise but also treats unburned particulate and toxic gas emissions.
• Equipping the end of runway 19 with a RESA (Runway End Safety Area) and EMAS (Engineered Materials Arresting System) equipment financed by the private commercial company Brussels Airport Company.