PIR4 - Moving the smart track closer to Dunalley

Recommendation 4 of Airservices’s flawed post-implementation review of its Hobart airspace design, recommends moving the smart track implemented in 2019 closer to Dunalley.

BACK STORY

Following its 2018 review of Hobart’s airspace, Airservices introduced the shorter smart track approach was introduced to improve safety, reduce fuel emissions and reduce impact on communities previously overflown for aircraft arriving at the south of the airport. Airservices announced that while it initially expected that not all airlines would be capable of using the smart track, uptake would increase over time.

SECLA and the community strongly supported this initiative during the consultation and in submissions to the post-implementation review.

However, following a community member’s suggestion, Airservices decided to reverse these benefits by recommending the smart track be moved over Connelly’s Marsh and closer to Dunalley (proposed track in green below), lengthening the path, creating more emissions and increasing overall noise impact.

Impact

Moving the smart track away from the airport further concentrates aircraft noise over areas which were never overflown prior to September 2017, combining it with the new jet departure path (blue), and new southern ‘RNAV’ arrival path used by jets not capable of flying on the smart track, and all arriving traffic when the new ‘Noise Abatement Procedure’ currently being trialled is operational (i.e. 18 hours every day).

Current status

Airservices is currently seek comment on moving the smart track - see the information sheet here: https://engage.airservicesaustralia.com/81678/widgets/390234/documents/298411

Airservices has stated numerous times that it is looking for noise sharing across communities, but this does not provide noise sharing, it’s just moving noise impacts to other communities.

There are other viable alternatives, a Western approach at higher altitude, turning out in Storm Bay, a long approach out wide of Maria Island and the Tasman Peninsula, coming up Storm Bay, and a preferred runway policy, where RNY12 is used whenever possible for arrivals (when weather permits) in lieu of RNY30.

What you can do