THE Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said a decision on controversial flightpath alterations will be published “in due course”.

The controversial proposals by TAG Farnborough Airport seek to introduce a new area of “controlled” airspace in which to operate.

TAG currently uses Class G (uncontrolled) airspace and continues to insist that the proposals would “offer all airspace users predictability and consistency of operations, leading to further reductions in noise and CO2 emissions”.

In a statement this week, a TAG spokesman said: “This could result in more precise and efficient inbound and outbound flightpaths, leading to fewer flights at low altitudes as arriving aircraft will remain higher for longer and departing aircraft will climb higher more quickly, as well as a net reduction in people overflown.”

But critics have said that for some residents this might contribute to pollution as planes climbing quickly use more power and make more noise.

But while a decision was expected in the spring, neither TAG nor the CAA was prepared to say why the process is taking so long.

A CAA spokesman said: “We can confirm an airspace change proposal has been submitted by TAG Farnborough Airport, which we are currently assessing. Once we have completed our assessment, we will make a formal decision.”