Residential concern: David Chalke, of Tyabb, is worried the permit conditions at Tyabb Airfield are not being adhered to. Picture: Gary Sissons
A TYABB resident has called on Mornington Peninsula Shire Council to monitor the Tyabb Airfield more closely to protect the safety of nearby residents.
David Chalke said he was disgusted by a response he received from the shire which stated it would not be monitoring the airfield during the Tyabb Air Show on March 4. "That is the day of all days the council should be monitoring it."
Mr Chalke said he was primarily concerned for residents' safety, following numerous accidents over the years. Last August, a pilot was lucky to walk away from a plane which crashed at the airfield.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? SCROLL TO BELOW THIS STORY TO POST A COMMENT.
Mr Chalke said problems arose mainly from the airport being largely unmonitored. "It is basically a paddock where people take off and land planes without any supervision.
"These are amateur pilots who only fly on the odd occasion, they aren't commercial pilots landing at Tullamarine. If it isn't monitored, the potential for something going wrong is greater."
Mr Chalke said there needed to be a measure of supervision from federal authorities to ensure the airfield was properly controlled.
He has claimed a number of bomber and jet planes at the air show exceeded the airfield's size limits and larger planes exceeded noise restrictions.
"The noise can be quite horrific. You can be out in the garden with a brush-cutter and ear plugs and still be able to hear the noise. The smaller aircraft aren't a problem, it is just the bigger planes."
Peninsula Aero Club president Peter Bernardi said the air show was run strictly in accordance with permit conditions. "No planes that landed at the Tyabb Air Show were above the weight limit. We stuck to the permit conditions."
Mr Bernardi said there were no safety concerns with larger planes landing at the airfield, which was a rare event.
He said there were some planes displayed at the air show that did not fly and other, larger planes flew over the site but did not land. Mr Bernardi said he was not aware of any other complaints about the air show.
Mr Chalke said he had no problem with the airfield as a whole, and just wanted to see permit conditions enforced.
Shire statutory planning manager Angela Hughes said the Tyabb Airfield was subject to three planning permits, issued in 1965, 1972 and 1991,
These permits aimed to limit the impact of the airfield on the surrounding township.
The shire told the Weekly that sustainable environment director Stephen Chapple wrote to the Tyabb and District Ratepayers Association on February 21 in response to queries about how the council would monitor planning permit compliance at the air show.
Mr Chapple stated the council would exercise its discretion not to take any enforcement action for the Tyabb Air Show.