Independent report says no to Alderney runway extension plan
THE prospect of an extension to Alderney Airport's runway has been shelved indefinitely after publication of a report weighing up various options with different costs.
The York Aviation report recommends that of the five options identified, the second cheapest is the most appropriate.
That recommends basic resurfacing of all the paved surfaces, including widening the runway to 23m, along with improving lighting and augmenting drainage. It puts the cost at between £7.2m and £9.5m.
Extending the runway to 1100m was all but ruled out as the cost – put at £19m. and £26m. – was impossible to justify against the modest economic benefits that the reviewers believed the runway alone was likely to bestow.
The reviewers estimated that carrying out the work would be to 2-2.75 times as much as on the mainland.
The reviewers did, however, say that works should be carried out as soon as possible.
'We are aware that discussions regarding the refurbishment of the runway have been going on for some time, during which the runway condition will have deteriorated further,' they wrote in their conclusion.
'Hence, given the concerns about service reliability and resilience, it appears to us important that the refurbishment works are undertaken as soon as possible lest further delay, whilst the provision of an extended runway is deliberated further, leads to the more occasions when the runway is not operationally fit for aircraft to land.'
