Exclusive:Demand to ban Tattoo aircraft flypast above Edinburgh Castle due to 'emotional harm'
They have provided some of the most spectacular dramatic moments of Edinburgh’s summer festivals season.
But now the spectacular flypasts staged above the Scottish capital to coincide with performances of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo could become a thing of the past.
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Hide AdCity leaders have raised concerns about their environmental impact with the Royal Air Force and organisers of the event, which attracts up to 220,000 people to Edinburgh Castle’s esplanade each August.
Their potential impact on war veterans, refugees and pets have also been raised ahead of the run of this year’s Tattoo.
However, organisers say they want to keep staging the flypasts as they are “a showcase of our military heritage and precision, which the Tattoo is famed for”.
Calls for a clampdown on the flypasts have been made after councillors were told seven separate flypasts were staged during the three-week run of the event last year.
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The figure emerged in an official “scorecard” report on the staging of last year’s summer festivals, which included the efforts of various events to reduce their carbon footprint, but did not include air pollution.
Councillors on Edinburgh City Council's culture committee, which oversees how the city handles its major events, voted to express “regret” over the “environmental damage and emotional harm” caused by the flypasts, which are normally staged just before a performance gets underway.
Green councillor Dan Heap told The Scotsman: “Tattoo flypasts are often raised by residents concerned about their impact on veterans, refugees and animals, as well as the environmental impact of unnecessary aircraft flights.
“Colleagues have consistently raised this question with the council leader [Cammy Day], who has raised it with the Tattoo and the RAF. Given recent agreements by the council to consider restricting firework use across the city, it is right that we also ask questions of other intrusive and environmentally damaging practices which benefit only a small handful of people.
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“The culture and communities committee has expressed its regret about the continuation of the flypasts. The next logical step is to find out how the council can actually try to stop them from happening”
Culture committee convener Val Walker said: "We’ll be further liaising with the Tattoo and RAF to see how we can better plan ahead for this August’s edition. I’m sure we can find a solution which is mutually beneficial.”
Tattoo chief executive Jason Barrett said: “We always take the environmental and social impacts of the Tattoo seriously and work very closely with our stakeholders across the city, as well as our colleagues at the Ministry of Defence, to ensure our event is safe and enjoyable.
"Flypasts are led by our partners at the RAF and we work to ensure our stakeholders are aware of the schedule in advance to keep disruption to a minimum. The flypasts are a showcase of our military heritage and precision, which the Tattoo is famed for.
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Hide Ad“We’re proud to be part of the festival infrastructure in Edinburgh that contributes millions of pounds annually to the Scottish economy. We remain vigilant in our planning and execution of all elements of our event."
A spokesman for the RAF said: “We will proudly take part in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, as well as many other ceremonial flypasts this year, as our aircraft have done for decades.
“For all such events, flight safety remains our top priority. Flypasts are well publicised in advance to ensure that disturbance is kept to a minimum. We continue to welcome engagement from the public and local authorities to assist in this.”
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