Permitted night-time flights at LBA
Aircraft are allowed to depart from LBA during the night, but in limited numbers (2,800 flights over the summer period, May-October). Daytime hours are currently defined as 7.00am – 11.00pm daily, but LBA have been pushing Leeds Council to permit an increase. It was revealed that LBA intends to request unrestricted flying from 6.00am – 11.30pm daily to facilitate an increase in flights.
However, LBA is predominantly in the business of holiday flights, and the economics of their business model (and that of the operators) is to get two flights off each day to (for example) Malaga, with an early departure by 7.00am, a flight time of 3 hours (arrival in Malaga will be one hour ahead of the UK), about an hour turnaround at Malaga, departing 12.30pm Malaga time, back at LBA by 2.30pm UK time, and off again for an evening arrival in Malaga and a return to the UK for the next day’s flights.
LBA is already using close to the permitted limit (2,783 night-time arrivals and departures against the 2,800 allowed in the period May-October 2019).