The airport of Lisbon plans to ban night flights for four hours following protests by local residents.
Local residents have continuously expressed their concerns regarding the issue of Schengen.News reports.
The announcement was made by Portugal’s Minister for Infrastructure and Housing, Miguel Pinto Luz, on November 7, 2024, in parliament.
According to a report from Travel Tomorrow, the Minister said that the measure took into account the findings of a working group related to these concerns.
Portugal’s Minister for Infrastructure and Housing said that in the light of ongoing criticism from municipalities, mayors, and citizens concerning the noise caused by aeroplanes and pollution, the move is a “giant step forward.”
Cap on Number of Night Flights Ignored, Survey Reveals
Campaign groups, including the non-governmental organisation Zero, say that the regular cap on the number of night flights, which is limited to 92 per week, is continuously being exceeded.
In addition, a member of the campaign platform “Airport out, Lisbon improves” (Aeroporto fora, Lisboa melhora, participating in protests outside Humberto Delgado Airport metro station, said that based on studies, about 160 nighttime flights are operated each week, which goes against the regular cap imposed by authorities in Portugal.
Record Number of Passengers in 2023
According to the figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), in 2023, national airports in Portugal handled a total of 67.5 million passengers and received 243.8 thousand planes on commercial flights.
Last year’s statistics, based on INE figures, revealed that last year’s figures surpassed those registered before the COVID-19 pandemic.
It also revealed that the number of passengers handled at national airports was 18.9 percent above those registered in 2022 and also increased by 12.3 percent compared to 2019.
In a bid to deal with the increasing number of visitors, several cities in Portugal have introduced permanent tourist taxes.
Earlier this year, authorities in Lisbon began charging all those over the age of 12 with a “taxa turistica” of €4 per person per night for the first seven nights of their stay.
Portugal is among the most famous countries in Europe. Based on the figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE), there were a total of 13.1 million visitors for a period between January and August this year.
Source: https://schengen.news/lisbon-plans-to-ban-night-flights-for-4-hours-each-night/
