Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-07-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy to reduce the number of military planes flying over Hull particularly at night.

Mark Lancaster

The Ministry of Defence takes its responsibilities to the general public very seriously indeed and would prefer not to cause any disturbance to the general public, including to those in Hull. However, there are no uninhabited areas of the UK large enough to cater for essential training needs.

Flying operations in the UK Military Low Flying System are avoided within major built-up areas (generally those with a population of over 10,000), although it is not always possible to avoid flying over the outskirts of towns and villages. A range of measures are in place to provide a balance between military training requirements and the need to avoid excessive noise on the ground. These include restrictions placed on the height, speeds and operating procedures of military aircraft in the UK Military Low Flying System.

Realistic training at night is essential to ensure aircrew are proficient in the necessary skills and to exploit our technological edge. The amount of night low flying remains proportional to the operational requirement.