Hi John,

here is something that I wrote on this very website as a comment a few weeks back - nobody else commented on it. Could you just be kind enough to glance over it and see if you can answer any of the questions. In short I FEAR the wind when it comes from the East now simply because of Heathrow Airport.


I have more or less lived in Twickenham since 1974 and have lived in the same house since 1989. Only in the year 2002 did I suddenly begin to notice the blight of departing aircraft noise from Heathrow when the wind comes from the East.

I know the number of flights from Heathrow have doubled since 1997 and without wishing to sound like a loony; I am desperate for a time machine so that I can go back and visit myself at various points in time from 1985 to 2001 to try and work out why I never noticed departing aircraft noise. Do other people who live in Twickenham feel the same? Did you not really notice this blight until recently? What has happened? Is it the sheer number of flights? The size of the aircraft? Did Heathrow use to close on a Sunday afternoon and start later in the mornings and finish earlier in the evenings? Did the wind very rarely blow from the East before 2002? I live in central Twickenham, is this is a new flight path? Is it because as we get older notice noise more – can it be that simple? I am genuinely quite confused over this issue and would welcome any comments from any other readers which might help enlighten me on this issue.