Phase 1 of Dubai Airport runway refurbishment complete
Upgrade work on airport’s southern runway completed 27 days ahead of schedule
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Dubai Airports has announced the completion of the first phase of its runway upgrade programme, stating that work has completed “ahead of schedule” on the refurbishment project being undertaken at the Dubai International Airport.
The upgrade and maintenance programme at the airport was split into two parts – the first phase of the project included the upgrade of runway lighting and construction of additional taxiways and rapid exits on the southern runway. 2,500 labourers worked on the refurbishment of the 4km-long runway during the first 27 days of the project, which commenced on the 1st May, 2014.
“We are pleased to report that we were able to deliver the southern runway four days ahead of schedule thanks to the hard work and co-operation between Dubai Airports, Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects and construction crews,” Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports said.
“While there is still a lot of work to be done, by August, we will be well placed to resume the strong growth achieved so far this year with new runways that can accommodate more aircraft while improving efficiency and the service to our passengers.”
Almost 800,000 tonnes of aggregates, 11,000 airfield lighting luminaries, 1,050km of cabling, 1,750 new manholes and 8.3km of drainage piping are expected to be employed for the runway rehabilitation and taxiway construction operations on the full refurbishment project.
The additional four days available to the construction team will be used for work on the northern runway, which will remain closed till the 30th July 2014 for the second phase of the refurbishment project. Air traffic, for the duration of the project, has partially moved to operating from Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai World Central.
“Operations at both airports have been smooth to date due largely to a robust planning process and timely coordination of day-to-day changes between all stakeholders,” Griffiths added.
