Objectives: The largest study to date around six major European airports, the HYENA study (HYpertension and Exposure to Noise near Airports) reported an excess risk of hypertension related to long-term aircraft noise exposure. The DEBATS study (Discussion on the health effects of aircraft noise) investigated the relationship between this exposure and the risk of hypertension in men and in women near French airports. Methods: Blood pressure of 1,244 participants older than 18 years of age was measured. Information about health, socioeconomic and lifestyle factors was collected by means of a face-to-face questionnaire performed at home by an interviewer. Aircraft noise exposure was assessed for each participant's home address using noise maps. They were calculated with the integrated noise model (INM) with a 1 dB-resolution. The major potential confounders being risk factors for hypertension were included in the logistic regression models: age, occupational activity, body mass index, physical activity, and alcohol consumption. Results: After adjustment for the main potential confounders, an exposure-response relationship was evidenced between the risk of hypertension and aircraft noise exposure at night for men only. A 10-dB(A) increase in Lnight was associated with an odds-ratio of 1.34 (95%CI=1.00-1.97). Conclusions: These findings contribute to the overall evidence suggesting that aircraft noise exposure at night-time may increase the risk of hypertension in men. Hypertension being a well-known and established risk factor for cardiovascular disease, the association reported in the present study implies that aircraft noise might be a risk factor also for cardiovascular diseases.