Calcutta: Calcutta airport’s worn-out main runway would have to make do with another round of patchwork as the plan to resurface the pockmarked tarmac has been postponed.
In its present state, the runway is a bumpy ride for aircraft with years of patchwork leaving the surface uneven.
Of the 3,627-metre stretch, only 600 metres on either side of the main runway — the touchdown zones where planes land — have had repairs. The work was completed on March 31 but pilots and passengers continue to complain about bumpy take-offs and landings.
The main runway was scheduled to be resurfaced this summer after a study by the Central Road Research Institute last year revealed damage to various portions of the tarmac. The report recommended giving the runway a new surface and laying a sheet of synthetic fabric under the bituminous layers to prevent rainwater from percolating down.
The overhaul was to start by the end of 2013 and be completed before the start of monsoon, but sources said the Rs 60-crore project was yet to be cleared by the Airports Authority of India in Delhi.
The green signal, when it comes, would require the authorities to coordinate with airports abroad before imposing restrictions on emergency landing and take-off for the duration of the project. Calcutta airport handles higher number of overflying aircraft compared to other Indian cities.
28/04/14 Sanjay Mandal/Telegraph
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In its present state, the runway is a bumpy ride for aircraft with years of patchwork leaving the surface uneven.
Of the 3,627-metre stretch, only 600 metres on either side of the main runway — the touchdown zones where planes land — have had repairs. The work was completed on March 31 but pilots and passengers continue to complain about bumpy take-offs and landings.
The main runway was scheduled to be resurfaced this summer after a study by the Central Road Research Institute last year revealed damage to various portions of the tarmac. The report recommended giving the runway a new surface and laying a sheet of synthetic fabric under the bituminous layers to prevent rainwater from percolating down.
The overhaul was to start by the end of 2013 and be completed before the start of monsoon, but sources said the Rs 60-crore project was yet to be cleared by the Airports Authority of India in Delhi.
The green signal, when it comes, would require the authorities to coordinate with airports abroad before imposing restrictions on emergency landing and take-off for the duration of the project. Calcutta airport handles higher number of overflying aircraft compared to other Indian cities.
28/04/14 Sanjay Mandal/Telegraph
