The government wants to scrap runway alternation at Heathrow and replace it with a new system of runway management called mixed mode. This will mean more planes, more noise and more pollution.
What is runway alternation?
Runway alternation is the current runway operation system at Heathrow.
At the moment, one runway is used for landings and the other for take-offs, with their roles switching at 3pm each day.
This system ensures that people living close to Heathrow only have aircraft flying directly overhead for half the day.
Runway alternation gives residents half a day’s peace and quiet.
What is mixed mode?
Mixed mode means allowing planes to land and take off on the same runway at the same time. It would enable Heathrow to increase its capacity by 60,000 planes a year overnight.
Introducing mixed mode will mean:
An extra 1,000+ planes flying in and out of Heathrow every week
Planes flying overhead all day every day
No more quiet periods
Why say no to mixed mode?
Mixed mode is the biggest immediate threat facing the residents of Hounslow because it could lead to a drastic impact in the quality of our daily lives almost overnight.
In the long-term, when combined with the introduction of a third runway, mixed mode could enable Heathrow to double its capacity in a decade:
The number of planes that fly in an out of Heathrow could rise from 471,000 per year to 800,000 per year and the number of passengers passing through airport every year could increase from 67m to 151m.