Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the management of Heathrow Airport have used dispensations under section 78(4) of the Civil Aviation Act to allow night flights in the last five years.

Heathrow Airport publishes this information in its Flight Performance Reports which are available on its website. Its latest published report (Q3 2014) includes data from Winter season 2006/07 up to and including Winter season 2013/14. Dispensations issued under section 78(4) of the Civil Aviation Act are categorised in the report as ‘not counted – delays’ or ‘not counted - emergency’. In Summer season 2014 there were a further 296 dispensations issued under section 78(4).