Despite most people commonly think of airports as infrastructures open 24/7 that is not always the case. Some airports operate with timings that see operations either slow down or pause completely during part of the day. How does this work and why do airports have curfews?
Airport Curfews Why Do Airports Use Them?
A curfew is never something airports welcome willingly or happily. They are most often imposed from above. An airport curfew is exactly what the name implies. The airport slows down or completely shuts down during specific hours of the day.
In most cases airport curfews are applied to airports during the night hours. The reason for that is to reduce noise created from aircraft taking off and landing.
That brief explanation of when airports apply curfews brings us to talk about why they are imposed on airports. And that has to do with the location of the airport itself.
When an airport is in extreme proximity to inhabited areas, or as happened in most cases housing was built in proximity to the airport, the necessity to have some quieter hours arises.
An airport curfew is applied to create a quiet time that grants people living nearby the airport or on the approach path to its runways the possibility to sleep better at night.
Why Is a Curfew a Problem for an Airport?
In essence an airport is a business. Businesses only make money when people can visit them and spend money. If the airport is closed, it's neither making money from landing fees nor is it from passengers using its facilities.
Also having a curfew creates a series of other operational headaches to deal with. For instance, long haul flights will have to make sure to depart from their origin airport in time to arrive before the curfew kicks in, or risk facing the possibility of a diversion.
Which Airports Have Curfews?
The prime examples of airports with diverse types of curfews are:
- London Airports (Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted)
- Sydney Kingsford Smith (SYD)
- Zurich Airport (ZRH)
The curfews at Sydney and Zurich are almost identical. The airports shut down flight operations between 23:00 (11PM) and 06:00 (6AM). Sydney Airport also completely shuts down its passenger terminal during those hours. I remember getting to the terminal as a cabin crew just as everything was still opening. Every time it gave me surreal feeling.
The curfew applied at London's largest airports is slightly different. Only the larger and noisiest planes are banned from landing during hours between 23:30 and 06:00. These airports have an annual quota of flights they are allowed to have landing and departing during such hours and must not overshoot it.
