While airlines are calling for abolition of a curfew at Sydney Airport, federal transport minister Anthony Albanese said it is off the agenda.
Qantas and Singapore Airlines have been lobbying the Federal Government to loosen operation regulations, saying the current cap of 80 flights per hour and the 11pm to 6am curfew are limiting growth at the air hub, the AAP reported.
They said quieter planes would allow the night curfew to be abolished and landing of the jets should be permitted.
If no change was made to scrap the limitations, the region would require another airport to handle increasing traffic, Qantas said in its submission to the Government.
But federal transport minister Anthony Albanese rebuffed the proposal, saying the regulations are not up for negotiations as they strike the right balance for communities in the vicinity of the airport.
“The curfew and cap…strike a balance between the commercial interest of airlines and the airport with the interest of those people who live around Sydney Airport,” he told the ABC Radio.
“The curfew and the cap are legislated and they are not up for negotiation.
“No government is likely to shift on either the curfew or the cap, it has bipartisan support in the commonwealth parliament and I can’t see that changing.”