These conclusions were expected. A little more than two years after the launch of the impact study procedure according to the balanced approach (EIAE) at Toulouse-Blagnac airport, the prefect of the Occitanie region, prefect of Haute-Garonne, Pierre-André Durand, presented his conclusions mid-last week. In the selected “balanced and effective” scenario intended to “protect the night,” we will note the ban on takeoffs scheduled between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. and that on landings between 11:30 p.m. and 6 a.m.
According to the prefecture, taking the scheduling of flights in 2024 as a basis, these measures would lead to the elimination of 441 flights arriving and 297 flights departing from Toulouse-Blagnac. Pierre-André Durand, who “wished to act with determination in order to reconcile the imperatives of protection and development, in a territory attached both to the quality of life of its inhabitants and to the influence of its aeronautical industry”, also announced the elimination, by the end of 2028, of the flight operated by Chronopost in the middle of the night, which is equivalent to removing 240 additional flights in the dead of night in 2029.
The Chronopost flight canceled, “a victory”
For Chantal Beer-Demander, from the Collective against air pollution in the Toulouse area (CCNAAT), the result is mixed. “The removal of the 2h45 Chronopost flight is a great victory. We’ve been working on it for 15 years. This is to the credit of the prefecture,” she admits. Despite everything, the scenario chosen is, according to her, dictated by the airline lobby, which “guided the impact study so as not to penalize the development of the local economy too much”. Contacted, the CCI of Toulouse, shareholder of the airport, did not react to these announcements.
Chantal Beer-Demander points out that 50,000 people are affected by this nuisance every night and emphasizes that the ban on programming does not mean the ban on flights. “For tilting flights, which have been delayed, this will still be possible. » She is however satisfied with this first step forward, which shows that we “can no longer do anything at Toulouse-Blagnac airport”. Contacted, the management of the platform, which took note of the decisions taken by the prefect during the meeting, did not wish to comment more broadly on the scenario chosen. As a reminder, a few weeks after the launch of the impact study, the Haute-Garonne departmental council and metropolitan elected officials affirmed their desire to ban commercial flights in the dead of night, proof that the subject had become sensitive.
The mayor of Toulouse Jean-Luc Moudenc also reacted, welcoming the agreement and ensuring that “this position strikes the balance that I wanted between the tranquility to which all Toulouse residents are entitled and the economic activities linked to the airport”. The prefect of Haute-Garonne finally declared that the Heart of Night Observatory, created in 2011, will be replaced by a Traffic Monitoring Committee in the dead of night, which will meet every quarter. “It’s a bit of name and shame,” explains Chantal Beer-Demander, who describes it as a “little extra.”