Moving to Lingfield - flight path help!

[HPF100]

Hi all, the lockdown and everything going on has made me and my husband decide to leave London and buy somewhere a lot greener, with good walks and just a slower pace of life really.

After lots of painful research we’re looking to buy in Lingfield - near the primary school. However (perhaps my research wasn’t rigorous enough!) I’ve noticed Lingfield is on the Gatwick flight path and so I’m worried that we’ll hear planes constantly - which might drive me a bit mad - especially when in the garden. The agent mentioned that our side of the village isn’t too bad but it’s impossible to tell right now given there are very limited flights.

Wondered if anyone lives or has stayed in Lingfield and could shed a bit of light on what the planes were like pre-covid. Is the noise is as bad as some of the reviews of the Long Acre camp site (also in Lingfield) make out.

Thanks so much!

Hi OP, we live in one of the villages on the Kent side of Lingfield, and are also under the flight path, albeit they are slightly higher up when the come over us!

It's definitely weird right now, there are NO planes

Pre covid, they honestly didn't bother me that much. You do hear them when they are coming into land but it's like living near a busy road in that you get used to the noise and don't notice it. The only exception is on rather windy days the engines do really roar and then it's noticeable, but only as it's louder than usual. And when the weather is clear, so like the last few weeks where we've had high pressure, they tend to take off towards the east and go up very quickly so by the time they are going over lingfield they are so high you don't notice at all. The last couple of summers they predominantly took off over us actually.

I would say, BA are not continuing operations from Gatwick, as are another airline I think, so I'd imagine flight volumes will be down post covid and take some time to recover, if ever.

Honestly, it's a really personal choice, they don't bother my household but I know they bother our immediate neighbours so only you will know what you can put up with. I couldn't live on a busy road though, and would take the planes any day. HTH