MILLIONS more Londoners face life under a flight path when Britain's airspace is redrawn to accommodate a million extra flights a year by 2015.
Low-flying aircraft using Heathrow, Stansted, Luton and smaller airports such as London City, Northolt, Southend and Biggin Hill will be rerouted in the most complex redesign in the world.
Several new flight paths will be introduced and new stacks - where aircraft circle while waiting to land - will be set up. Under the plans, some of Heathrow's four existing stacks may be moved.
The changes, which are due to come into force by 2009, have been made because airspace capacity has almost reached its limit. The plans will mean that hundreds of thousands more homes in London and the Home Counties will be under a flight path.
Meanwhile the expansion of dozens of airports is being supported by the Governmentallowing passenger numbers to double by 2030 to 470m a year.
There are currently plans for new runways at both Heathrow and Stansted. At Stansted, passenger numbers are expected to increase by 10 million a year.
But the National Air Traffic Services (Nats) is trying to avoid a long public debate over the airspace changes by claiming that they have nothing to do with the runway plans.
While public inquiries will be held into the runway plans - and those affected can have their cases heard by an independent planning inspector - people affected by the airspace changes will only be able to write letters.
Nats will consult the public at the end of this year before asking the Civil Aviation Authority to make a final decision.
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