The problem of aircraft noise has been touched on by a number of today's speakers, but I wonder how much it is appreciated that probably the biggest single interface problem before the aviation industry today is that of environmental pollution.

The dilemma which every Minister responsible for civil aviation has to face is how to strike a right balance between, on the one hand, economic and operational considerations and, on the other, the protection of the public from excessive noise. Successive Ministers have indicated very clearly to the Department that they favoured paying a substantial price, if required, for the preservation of amenity.