AVIATION experts on the Isle of Wight are trying to resume trials aimed at giving North-East police aircraft a softly, softly approach.

If they are successful residents in Middleton St George, who take the brunt of take-off noise from the Teesside airport plane, can look forward to a good night's sleep.

The BN Group - formerly Britten Norman - had to abandon trials when it went into receivership but it is now back on track after a rescue package.

Mr Mark Wilson, head of flight engineering, told the D&S Times on Wednesday that new propellers fitted to the police air support unit aircraft had been proving very successful.

"The unit provided the test aeroplane, but this is also a Department of Trade and Industry project to try to remove aviation noise in the widest environment.

"However we are very conscious that the police force Islanders, because of their type of operation, attract comment most readily."

Mr Wilson said that the Farnborough air show on July 24 could be the opportunity to get the programme together again in the next few weeks.

"It will bring some of the key people in the UK and from the United States together."

Middleton St George Parish Council heard on Monday that one woman had complained that the police Islander had flown so low over her home at 4am, that it sounded as if her roof was being taken off.

Coun John Sterling accused the pilots of misbehaving by zooming unnecessarily over the village.

But Mr Nigel Dunnill, manager of the North-East air support unit at Newcastle, said: "We spend as little time as possible over incidents and try to get the right balance between providing a service to officers on the ground and performing a service to the public.

"I have been campaigning for three years to try for noise reduction on our aircraft and we had hoped tests would have been finished long before now."