Belgium’s Federal Aviation Ombudsman, Philippe Touwaide, fired back at several Brussels mayors on 29 December, accusing them of making “defamatory and misleading” statements about temporary flight-path changes at Brussels Airport. Touwaide insists the rerouting over the north of the city is “strictly safety-related” and will be lifted once runway maintenance finishes in mid-January.
The ombudsman’s intervention deepens a rift between federal regulators and local politicians who say residents are being used as “human buffers” for airport operations. Touwaide argued that extraordinary weather and strong cross-winds had forced controllers to rely on the contentious 07L trajectory more often than planned. He urged mayors to “stop inflaming public opinion” and instead work with the aviation authority on long-term noise-mitigation strategies.
![Aviation Ombudsman Rebukes Brussels Mayors Over ‘Defamatory’ Noise Claims]()
For HR and global-mobility teams, the spat underscores Belgium’s fragmented governance: communal leaders, regional ministers and the federal level share overlapping powers on transport. Companies relocating staff to Brussels should monitor whether new curfews or flight-caps emerge, as these could affect late-night connections prized by business travellers.
Amid this uncertainty, VisaHQ’s Belgium platform (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) can at least take the visa and work-permit paperwork off companies’ plates. Its self-service dashboard lets HR teams check entry requirements, file applications online and track approvals in real time, so staff rerouted at the last minute don’t suffer additional administrative turbulence.
Legal analysts note that if mayors pursue court action, judges could impose provisional flight restrictions, disrupting winter schedules. Airlines have warned that any sudden curfew would force them to cut frequencies or reroute through secondary hubs, adding costs for corporate travel programmes.
The ombudsman’s intervention deepens a rift between federal regulators and local politicians who say residents are being used as “human buffers” for airport operations. Touwaide argued that extraordinary weather and strong cross-winds had forced controllers to rely on the contentious 07L trajectory more often than planned. He urged mayors to “stop inflaming public opinion” and instead work with the aviation authority on long-term noise-mitigation strategies.
For HR and global-mobility teams, the spat underscores Belgium’s fragmented governance: communal leaders, regional ministers and the federal level share overlapping powers on transport. Companies relocating staff to Brussels should monitor whether new curfews or flight-caps emerge, as these could affect late-night connections prized by business travellers.
Amid this uncertainty, VisaHQ’s Belgium platform (https://www.visahq.com/belgium/) can at least take the visa and work-permit paperwork off companies’ plates. Its self-service dashboard lets HR teams check entry requirements, file applications online and track approvals in real time, so staff rerouted at the last minute don’t suffer additional administrative turbulence.
Legal analysts note that if mayors pursue court action, judges could impose provisional flight restrictions, disrupting winter schedules. Airlines have warned that any sudden curfew would force them to cut frequencies or reroute through secondary hubs, adding costs for corporate travel programmes.
