MP Sarah Olney is demanding moves to block an increase in the number of night flights out of Heathrow amid noise misery for households under the flightpaths.

Residents have complained that last Sunday there was just a four hour window during the night where there were no planes. And the situation is expected to continue through the summer peak travel period.

Huge numbers of people across the Richmond Borough are losing sleep, while the noise is a particular problem during the heatwave when windows are left open to get some relief.

Heathrow bosses have admitted that the chaos at the airport caused by a lack of staff has caused serious flight delays, which means more planes are taking off at around midnight and beyond.

There have also been suggestions – denied by the Government – that ministers might relax controls on night flights to help deal with the delays at Heathrow.

In theory, Heathrow does not have any scheduled departures between 10.50pm and 6am, or scheduled arrivals between 10.55pm and 4.40am. But exceptions are allowed when planes are delayed.

The Richmond Park MP, Sarah Olney, said: 'Last week, I wrote to Grant Shapps to ask that he publicly reject the rumours that the government will relax restrictions on night flights.

'On Sunday, many residents had just four uninterrupted hours without aircraft noise. The government must not let this go on all summer.'

In her letter, the MP said she objected 'in the strongest possible terms' to any move to formally allow an increase in night flights.

She wrote: "Night flights are the most intrusive form of airplane noise and there is clear evidence harm both the physical and mental health of those residents who live under the flight paths."

Three aircraft arrived at Heathrow after midnight on Sunday morning. The latest was a British Airways flight from Kalamata, Greece which touched down at 12.31am, more than two hours behind schedule.

Overflown residents were given little respite, as the first flight scheduled for Sunday morning arrived at 4.33am.

A 49-year-old woman who did not want to be named said her sleep has been severely disrupted as departing low-altitude aircraft have 'a huge impact on those of us that are now directly under a flight path'.

Heathrow confirmed there is a problem caused by delayed flights. A spokesman said: "As a result of the current pressures on the airport existing schedules have seen more late runners.

"We know that there has been a recent increase in late running flights, and we appreciate that noise created at night can cause greater disturbance to our local communities.

"The increase is due to a number of cumulative factors including the closure of airspace in Ukraine and Russia, which means affected airlines must use longer routes and face associated delays. There are further daily European airspace restrictions above normal levels due to air traffic control staff shortages, industrial action and weather avoidance. 

 "At Heathrow, like several other UK airports, these constraints are being compounded by resourcing challenges across the aviation community – airlines, ground handlers and airport staff. This includes delays in recruitment for operational front line colleagues due to the security and background checks required by Government. We have faced 40 years of growth in just four months and that has put the entire aviation industry under pressure."

He added: "There is no formal ban on night flights at Heathrow, but since the 1960s the Government has placed restrictions on them. Night-time (23:30 - 06:00) operations at Heathrow remain heavily restricted by the Government, which sets a limit of 5,800 night-time take-offs and landings a year. A night quota limit is also in place, which caps the amount of noise the airport can make at night. 

"We continue to remain within these restrictions set by the Government, although we recognise that the amount of late running flights is still more than communities would normally expect to experience.

"We apologise and want to reassure you that we're working hard to ramp up our operations as quickly as we can to minimise the number of late running flights, as we progress through an exceptionally challenging summer season."

Transport minister, Robert Courts, said there is no plan to approve more night flights.

He said: "The Government accepts that there are health impacts associated with aircraft noise and keeps all relevant evidence under review. The Department for Transport has previously commissioned research on the effects of aviation noise on annoyance, health and wellbeing and has tasked the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to carry out a further survey in the next year. The Department has also commissioned an Aviation Night Noise Study, to understand specifically how impacts associated with exposure to aviation noise vary by time of night.

"The Government sets noise and night flight controls at the designated airports (Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted). At other airports, these controls are agreed locally.

"Following consultation, the Government announced in July 2021 that the existing night flight movement limits at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are to be rolled over for a period of three years – until October 2025."