HIGH Wycombe's air park is set to become home to more planes after plans were passed to extend one of its hangars, despite an outcry from residents.

Air Training Services (ATS), based at the airfield in Clay Lane, Booker, was given permission to add an extension to the back of one of its existing hangars, build a lean-to office and a two storey side extension.

Thirty residents wrote to Wycombe District Council's development control committee saying the work would bring extra aircraft movements to an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).

David Shufflebotham, representing the Wycombe Air Park Action Group, spoke at the committee meeting last Wednesday to oppose the plans.

He said: "Any increase in aircraft movements will further damage the environment for which you are responsible - the green belt, AONB."

Mr Shufflebotham urged the council to "freeze" any further applications from the park until a scheme was put in place to monitor aircraft movements, which he claimed was not currently done.

"The applicant claims only one additional movement per week," he said. "How can you possibly check compliance? The fact is you can't."

But according to council figures the number of movements at the air park is decreasing. In 2007 there were 92,000 movements a year compared to 175,000 in 1989. Steve Ferguson, from ATS, admitted the extension would bring more movements, but only by a tiny amount.

He said: "If the extension is granted they will increase the number of flights or movements - instead of 100 a year it might make 125. Even that small percentage does not contribute to these nuisances local residents are up in arms about."

Mr Ferguson explained ATS is a maintenance company, rather than a training business, and the extension was needed for safety reasons.

In its current state, only three aircraft can fit inside the hangar making movement around it difficult and hazardous but the extension will alleviate these problems.

Clive Harriss, (con, Tylers Green and Loudwater), sympathised with residents' complaints, but supported the application as he believed it would help the air park's economy.

"This is primarily a tidy up. If we're going to see any increase in movement it's going to be people coming in cars," he added. "I sympathise with local residents but I can't see this as having the impact on helicopter movements, which seems to be the main bug bear."