THE tranquillity of the North Yorks Moors National Park could be spoiled by jet noise - bringing misery to people in the region.

That's the grim prediction of the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CRPE), which believes that large areas of peaceful countryside could soon be blighted by noisy aircraft.

A report issued by the body believes the expansion of aviation over the next 20 years will mean more than 600,000 people across the country would have their lives "seriously affected" by noise by 2030.

It speculates that entirely new flight paths, such as over the North York Moors National Park, could bring noise to fresh areas.

It also predicts a "significant" increase in the frequency of flights, with as many as one a minute leaving airports like Leeds-Bradford.

The CPRE believes the number of people affected by traffic movements at Leeds-Bradford would more than double.

Paul Hamblin, the CPRE's head of transport policy, said: "The problems of disturbance immediately around airports are well known - but our research shows that fewer and fewer areas will be immune from the effects of noise.

"Decisions made this year over future air transport will have a profound effect on the ability to protect a defining characteristic of the countryside - its tranquillity."

Updated: 10:50 Wednesday, June 11, 2003