In May Ireland's low-cost airline Ryanair will launch five new routes from Rome's Ciampino airport: Memmingen in Germany, Riga in Latvia, Tampere in Finland, Thessaloniki in Greece and Vilnius in Lithuania. The new routes, in addition to the 45 already operating out of Ciampino, will lead to in excess of 4 million passengers passing through Rome's second airport.

News of extra air traffic has angered local representatives in Ciampino. They complain that Ryanair has disregarded the well-being of residents who are affected by excessive noise pollution. Their previous complaints have been countered by Ryanair which has requested that the area be subject to an "acoustic re-zoning". Owner and chief executive of Ryanair Michael O'Leary sought to assuage their fears by claiming that Ryanair aircraft were quieter than those of other companies.

A war of words continues between Ryanair and ENAC, the national agency charged with regulating civil aviation in Italy. Following antagonistic remarks made by O