Regulations are always fully thought through and serve a clear purpose—thus always achieving their goals, right? Recently, I’ve started to question some of them and invite everyone to second-guess with me.

In Europe, many airports have strict curfews for noise abatement purposes. We can all agree on how important a good night’s sleep is. But is it always sensible to comply with a restriction if the outcome doesn’t actually uphold its intended purpose? If that sounds puzzling, the real-world example I’m about to share might strike you as equally amusing and frustrating. //

However, the point of this article isn’t to speculate on what-ifs. The pilots of NH203 and the tower controller played the cards they were dealt. And it all culminated at 04:59:42—just 18 seconds before the earliest allowed landing time—when the radio transmitted: “ALLNIPPON 203, GO AROUND”

A go-around call requires immediate compliance—no discussion, no delay. It’s part of our safety culture and rigorous training. Once stabilized, we can begin to ask “why.” Moments later, the tower controller explained: the aircraft had arrived too early. And this is why I’m writing this.

Have We Lost Sight of the Original Goal?

Somewhere along the line, we’ve lost the plot. Pilots, passengers, airlines—and the environment—were penalized for being early. //

The direct consequences?

• An additional 16 minutes of flight time
• Additional high-workload scenarios for the crew after nearly 14 hours of overnight flying
• A stressful experience for passengers, many of whom may never have experienced a go-around

Environmentally, an extra 1,900 kg of fuel burned, additional uncalled for CO₂ emitted, and perhaps the loudest possible noise event as the aircraft roared over Frankfurt and its surroundings—including, no doubt, a wake-up call—before the official opening hour.

All of this—done in the name of avoiding noise pollution.

I have to ask again, what was achieved here?

Two added critical phases of flight.

Higher operating cost.

And the very thing the regulation was supposed to prevent: excessive noise.