VILLAGERS have one more court battle to face in the fight for a quiet life at home.

Residents living near Elvington Airfield were hoping for an end to the deafening sound of Formula One (F1) testing and other high performance vehicle events there.

They told a court it was like "howling banshees whipping through the house" and "horrendous and outrageous".

They were delighted when, last month, district judge Harrison told the owners of Elvington Airfield that F1 racing cars could not be tested there on more than ten days a year.

But now the airfield's owners, Elvington Park Ltd, have appealed against the decision to York Crown Court.

Ian Bailey, Elvington Parish Council chairman, said: "I regret there are yet more delays, but this is entirely consistent with what Elvington Park Ltd has done all the time."

The court battle between Elvington Park Ltd and City of York Council over a noise abatement notice has already lasted nearly a year and has been repeatedly adjourned for one reason or another.

Finally, after a four-day trial heard partially at Pickering and partially at Harrogate Magistrates Court, the district judge decided that F1 testing days should be restricted to ten annually, Auto 66 motorbike events should not take place more than once every six weeks and that residents should have a quiet weekend at least once every four weeks.

The court also heard that McLaren's Formula One testing team could quit Britain if it was banned from the airfield.

The district judge said there was no doubt that the testing caused a nuisance to residents living nearby - and that the company had accepted that fact.

But it would be unreasonable to prohibit F1 testing altogether. Residents had wanted a total ban.

Elvington Park Ltd was ordered to pay three-quarters of City of York Council's estimated £40,000 court costs.

At the appeal, a circuit judge or a recorder could now hear the complete case again, including evidence and legal submissions on the law of noise and noise nuisance. The case could be heard within weeks, if there is a court available, but a firm date has yet to be decided.

The airfield currently has a planning application for hangars on the site, but the parish council has asked City of York Council to delay considering it until after the noise court case is decided.