EU Court of Justice rules on DHL-subsidiary aircraft noise

The European Court of Justice has delivered a ruling that countries in the European Union can establish maximum noise levels, as measured from the ground, for overflying aircraft near an airport. Europe’s highest court was providing clarification on European law in a long-running legal case between a Deutsche Post DHL subsidiary and regional authorities in Belgium.

DHL-owned cargo airline European Air Transport was fined EUR 56,000 back in October 2007 for breaching noise limits in the Brussels area.

According to the regional authorities, EAT flights from Brussels-National Airport exceeded night-time noise limits when overflying the Brussels-capital area on 62 occasions in October 2006.

EAT appealed the fine in January, and again in March 2008, in the belief that in enforcing noise limits, under European law noise levels could only be measured from the aircraft, and that the setting of ground-measured limits near airports was effectively an unlawful restriction on operating out of those airports.

After EAT lost its first appeal in January 2008, the second was referred by Belgian courts fo the EU Court to clarify whether the noise limits set by Region de Bruxelles-Capitale could be applied as noise limits under European law.

The EU Court ruled last week that “national environmental legislation imposing limits on maximum noise levels, as measured on the ground, to be complied with by aircraft overflying areas located near the airport, does not itself constitute an ‘operating restriction’ within the meaning of that provision, unless, in view of the relevant economic, technical and legal contexts, it can have the same effect as prohibitions of access to the airport in question.”

In explanatory notes, the Court stated that “Member States can, theoretically, establish maximum noise levels, as measured on the ground, to be complied with by airlines overflying areas located near an airport.”

The case is not decided, however, and returns to the Belgian court for a final decision as to whether the Brussels noise limits are so restrictive as to clearly prohibit access to the airport.

(Updated September 15, 2011): A spokesperson for Deutsche Post DHL told Post&Parcel that the European Court of Justice decision “does not have any direct impact on DHL”.

The spokesperson added: “The case is back with the Council of State, which will decide on the merit in due course on the basis of the ECJ and the Belgian Constitutional Court decisions.”