By Laura Michell
Residents of Gladstone Park and Westmeadows will be among the worst affected by plans for a third runway at Melbourne Airport, according to a draft master plan for the airport.
The draft master plan for the airport’s $10 billion expansion includes plans for a third runway to be built in the next five years to keep up with massive passenger growth. Melbourne Airport predicts passenger numbers will double to 67 million by 2038.
The new runway will be built as an east-west runway, parallel to the airport’s existing east-west runway. The draft master plan shows that between 6am and 11pm each day, 35 per cent of planes arriving at Melbourne Airport will fly over Westmeadows and Gladstone Park using the new runway.
Two per cent of planes are forecast to depart from that runway during the day.
Arrivals are forecast to run at two per cent between 11pm and 6am, while departures will be less than one per cent.
No Melbourne Airport flights currently pass over Gladstone Park or Westmeadows.
Airport spokesman Grant Smith said that while the airport had worked with Airservices to develop different operating modes for day and night time, people living in Gladstone Park would experience more aircraft noise.
People living in and around Broadmeadows, who currently have 23 per cent of the airport’s total arriving planes flying over their houses as they make their way to the existing east-west runway, will notice an increase in aircraft noise.
Airport modelling shows that 49 per cent of plane arrivals using the existing east-west runway will fly over Broadmeadows and surrounds between 6am and 11pm. At night, arrivals will drop to four per cent.
Hume Residents Airport Action Group spokesman and Gladstone Park resident Frank Rivoli said the draft master plan was “disastrous” for residents.
“There are no options, residents need to come together on this issue and lobby for a night curfew limiting aircraft arrivals and departures on all runways,” he said.
The draft master plan is out for public comment until October 5.
A number of community forums have been organised, including one at the Hume Global Learning Centre in Broadmeadows on Saturday, August 11, from 11am-2pm.
Details: my.melbourneairport.com/masterplan
