UK to redesign flight paths to slash journey times and reduce pollution

New laws to capitalise on latest technology and lead to change in routes created more than 70 years ago

A British Airways passenger plane takes off from Heathrow Airport in west London. Reuters

The UK has announced a major shake-up of flight paths, intended to reduce pollution, make way for flying taxis and speed up journeys.

New laws were set out today to enable the largest redesign of UK airspace since it was first formed in the 1950s, when there were around 200,000 flights per year, compared to 2.7 million in 2024. Redesigned "skyways" could allow planes to climb more quickly during take-off and descend more smoothly, reducing noise and air pollution for residents who live along flight routes, the government suggested.

It could also lead to fewer delays and quieter take-offs, although this has been disputed by some residents' groups concerned about noise near runways and the effect on house prices. British Airways said recently that using AI has allowed it to increase punctuality at Heathrow, to a point at which more than 90 per cent of its flights are leaving on time.

The exact new flight paths have not yet been revealed. As part of the consultation leading up to the new laws, a team examined how planes fly in and out of London's airspace, which air-traffic controllers say is one of the busiest and most complex in the world, with take-offs and landings at five major airports and several smaller ones. They aimed to use modern technology to find more efficient flight paths to reduce time in the air, for example through holding patterns before receiving permission to land.

There are more than 8,000 flights daily on some of the UK's busiest days. The new UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS) will be fully operational by the end of 2025. UKADS’ initial focus will be on redesigning London’s airspace, including expansion at Heathrow. Over a longer timeframe, routes could be designed that support flight paths for new and emerging technologies such as drones and flying taxis, it said.

Heathrow Airport: 1958 v 2020

The Aviation Minister Mike Kane said: "Redesigned ‘skyways’ will turbocharge growth in the aviation industry, not least by boosting airport expansion plans and supporting job creation, driving millions into the UK economy. Modernising our airspace is also one of the simplest ways to help reduce pollution from flying and will set the industry up for a long-term, sustainable future."

The plans come as global forecasts suggest a near-doubling of passengers and cargo in the next 20 years. Rob Bishton, chief executive of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: "Modernising our airspace infrastructure is key to enabling the growth of the sector and helping mitigate its impacts."

The UK’s airspace network is one of the busiest and most complex in the world, handling a quarter of Europe’s traffic despite having only 11 per cent of its airspace.

Decades of flight from Heathrow

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  Heathrow Airport in London, the UK's busiest, has been a travel hub for decades. Here The National takes a look back at Heathrow through the years. All photos: Getty Images

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  An Airco De Havilland biplane of the British airline, Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited, about to leave on the company’s inaugural flight from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome, later known as Heathrow, to Le Bourget, Paris, in August 1919

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  Waterlogged runways at London Airport - Heathrow's original name - one week before it became Britain's main aerial gateway to the US in 1946

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  The new BOAC maintenance headquarters at London Airport circa 1955

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  The air traffic control room at the airport's new terminal in 1955

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  US film star Marilyn Monroe with her husband, playwright Arthur Miller, after arriving at the airport in July 1956

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  An aerial view showing the runways in 1958

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  The arrivals and departures board in 1960

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  A new airport gift shop, selling items by Chanel, Wedgwood and Pringle of Scotland, in 1961

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  The Queen's Building and the No. 1 Building Europa at Heathrow in 1965

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  The Beatles leave Heathrow for Salzburg in Austria, to resume filming of the movie Help!, in 1965

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  Passenger terminal gates at Heathrow in 1966

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  Keith Granville, managing director of BOAC, holding up a model of the Boeing 747 jet, with the new aircraft hangars under construction in the background, at Heathrow in 1969

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  An aerial view of Heathrow in 1970

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  Passengers boarding the first BOAC Jumbo Jet 747 used for a commercial flight, from London Heathrow to New York, in 1971

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  Passengers going through the departure lounge at Heathrow in 1973

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  Concorde takes off from Heathrow on her first commercial flight for British Airways in 1976

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  Men at work finalising the Heathrow Central underground station before its opening in 1977

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  Queen Elizabeth II passing though the Tube gates at Heathrow Central station on its opening in 1977

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  An aerial view of Heathrow in 1978

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  Passengers waiting near a departures board in 1979

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  Holidaymakers waiting in the departure lounge at Terminal 3 of Heathrow in 1981

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  British Airways employees protesting at Heathrow in 1984

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  Passengers and staff observe a silence in Heathrow's Terminal One to mark the beginning of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997

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  Rower Steve Redgrave at Heathrow with daughters Sophie and Natalie and son Zak after returning from the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games with his gold medal

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  Spectators watch the last Concorde land at Heathrow in 2003

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  Fans surround the coach carrying the England rugby team at Heathrow, as they arrived from Sydney after winning the World Cup in 2003

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  Heathrow's Terminal 2 in 2004

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  Passengers queue to check in at Terminal 1 of Heathrow Airport during the Christmas 2006 and New Year period

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  Passengers wait at Terminal 1 on August 10, 2006, after airport security was raised to critical when a terrorist plot to blow up planes in mid-flight from the UK to the US was disrupted by police

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  Planes queueing to take off at Heathrow in 2007

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  The new Terminal 5 at Heathrow in 2008

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  Aircraft at Heathrow Airport in front of the London skyline in 2016

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  Members of Team GB arrive from Rio de Janeiro at Heathrow, after returning from the 2016 Olympics, which saw Great Britain's strongest performance at the Games in over a century

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  A composite photo shows planes taking off from Heathrow in November 2016. Forty-two planes were captured between 10.17am and 11.17am and a montage was created from those single images

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  Items are arranged during an auction preview at Heathrow in 2018. The contents of Terminal 1, which closed in 2015, were being sold

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  An airline passenger wearing a face mask pushes her bags through Heathrow's Terminal 5 during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020

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  British Airways employees welcome Olympians returning from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021

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  Travellers wait in a long queue to pass through the security check in 2022

Heathrow’s chief operating officer, Javier Echave, said: "This is an important step to making UK aviation more modern, efficient, and reliable for the millions of people and businesses who rely on available airspace capacity."

However, two residential groups, Heathrow Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise (Hacan) and Communities Against Gatwick Noise Emissions (Cagne), raised concerns that the new routes would negatively affect house prices and increase pollution due to the increase in flights.

Last year, easyJet, the UK’s largest airline, said inefficient use of airspace contributes to increases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and flight times. The carrier described the problem as a “universal issue” across the whole of Europe, but said the “greatest inefficiencies” for its operations are in the UK.

Among the problems cited were aircraft being required to climb in steps after take-off, complex routing, and delayed descents to manage the workload of air traffic control (ATC) staff.