The regional Brussels Government could take legal action to tackle the increased use of an air route that has disrupted the sleep of Brussels residents for months.
Brussels State Secretary for the Environment, Ans Persoons (Vooruit), said in an interview with BX1 earlier this week that she aims to encourage the region to join local municipalities in taking legal action to reduce the use of the runaway approach route RNP-07L to Brussels Airport.
The use of the RNP-07L to land at Zaventem's runway 07L was activated in the summer of 2025 as a temporary measure due to works at Brussels Airport. The route has also been more regularly used due to strong winds and EU regulations.
The route has been controversial in the Brussels-Capital Region, as it means that more aircraft fly over more densely populated parts of the region, increasing noise pollution, particularly in the north and west of the city.
Affected residents wrote in an open letter earlier this year that the aircraft noise has reduced their time of uninterrupted sleep to just three and a half hours.
Persoons said in late April that she's already received hundreds of complaints from Brussels residents.
"Parents complain that their children can no longer sleep at night; others say they want to move house solely because of the noise pollution," she told Radio 1’s De Ochtend. "It is simply inhumane to make people live under a flight route."
The State Secretary told BX1 that she addressed the issue on Monday with the Federal Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke (Les Engagés), who is in charge of the flight routes that are enforced by the air traffic controller.
While she said the conversation was “constructive”, she does not see the situation being resolved any time soon, as the Federal Minister is still waiting for the results of various studies commissioned by the Arizona government on the flight path.
“The current situation is untenable. I am therefore going to propose to the Brussels Government that, together with the municipalities, we take legal action against the Federal Government,” Persoons told BX1.
The State Secretary wants to see a reform regarding how wind conditions are interpreted and to ensure air traffic controllers are less quick to activate the use of the RNP-07L.
Speaking to Bruzz on Wednesday, Brussels Mobility Minister Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) said she supports Persoons' initiative.
Persoons will reportedly meet next week with the Brussels mayors who want to join the potential legal action.
Earlier this year, the Brussels municipalities of Schaerbeek, Koekelberg and Molenbeek-Saint-Jean already announced their intentions to take the matter to court.
The Brussels Times contacted Federal Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke for comment, but it has yet to receive a response as of the time of publication.
