Canberra Airport's second Sydney airport snow job continues...

(See what I did there?)

The latest glossy piece of heavy-weight paper to come out of the Canberra Airport contains yet another spin piece about how critical it is for the operation of the Sydney Airport that the Canberra Airport remains curfew-free.

"Canberra Airport is the only curfew-free airport within reach of Sydney..."

They go on to claim a recent example of nine flights being diverted from Sydney to Canberra due to bad weather, so they could wait out the weather, refuel and return as supposed evidence to back up their argument:

"This event was a clear demonstration of Canberra Airport's important role as a backstop for Kingsford Smith Airport. Canberra's curfew-free status is critical to that role." - Managing Director Stephen Byron.

Wrong...

Source: David Pope, Canberra Times

What it is a clear demonstration of is that we should not be the only major airport that does NOT have a curfew!

Every curfew has let-out clauses that accommodate unusual events such as the bad weather diversion cited.

Canberra Airport's campaign against a local curfew has nothing to do with special one-offs, but everything to do overnight freight operations and their quest to be the Badgery's Creek alternative.

Canberra is a very quite city, devoid of the underlying ambient noise levels that pervade every other city in Australia. It's part of what we like about our home. Why should we sacrifice that? The economic benefits of the airport's transport operation cannot be denied. But it should never be all 'give' from the community - to the detriment of residential amenity.

A curfew is about the community having a line drawn under how much the airport can 'take'. Canberra needs a curfew sooner rather than later. I wrote about this in 2009. Nothing has changed. Except the Airport think they are getting away with it because the ACT ALP Government has gone all 'roll-over-and-tickle-my-tummy' about the issue. And the Liberals are no better. I met with Jon Stanhope and with Brendan Smyth about the issue and they refused to put any limits on the Airport's development aspirations.

The Greens have consistently supported the Canberra community's battle for a curfew - in the ACT Assembly and up on The Hill. Supporting the Greens is one way you can support the Greens' campaign come the election on 20 October.