COLIN Bessell pauses midsentence while the roar of a plane flying just a few hundred feet overhead passes. The 83-year-old has lived on Ringway Road in Wythenshawe, just yards from the end of Runway One at Manchester Airport (originally Ringway), since the 1960s.
But he says he still hasn't got used to the noise. "It's just incessant," he said. "In the summer you have the windows open so there's no point in noise insulation. If you're sat in the garden it just never stops. You can't talk to each other."
And there's no respite, because the noise doesn't even stop at night. Manchester is the third busiest airport in the country, behind Gatwick and Heathrow.
But whereas Heathrow has strict limits on the number of overnight flights, in Manchester things are a bit different. On Saturday, for example, 45 flights were due to land between midnight and 5am. That's an average of one every seven minutes.
By contrast the first flight at Heathrow was scheduled to land at 5am. Manchester Airport has operated on a 24-hour basis for more than 60 years, the airport's website explains.
Denne historien er fra September 17, 2023-utgaven av MEN on Sunday.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra September 17, 2023-utgaven av MEN on Sunday.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Bethell relishing Old Trafford T20 decider
JACOB Bethell was pleased to get down to business for England after admitting he struggled to shut out the external noise during a low-key international debut.
Is this turning point that boss so badly needs?
Victory buys Ten Hag breathing space, but now United must capitalise on it
Food for thought for the Insta diners
Why we need to disconnect from our phones for the best eating out experience
'It would normally be packed but now! it's a GHOST TOWN'
Traders warn they won't survive the loss of spaces after water company closed car park
Man used trafficked woman to make more than £100k
A MAN profited from the exploitation of a vulnerable woman to the tune of more than £100,000.
'You imagine there would be a lot of barking but it was silent?
The devastating Manchester Dogs Home fire ten years on
Couple's home hit by car for THIRD time
Pair forced to evacuate property
Shopkeeper faces £20k costs to undo changes he made
Business owner was refused permission for work already done
Disorder'more anti-government than racism'
Barrister makes claim as thug who attacked bus during trouble outside hotel housing asylum seekers jailed
'There's no characters left'
Traders and customers' sadness as shutters come down on market for final time