‘Alderney’s runway should be extended to allow for ATRs’
AN ALDERNEY States member with decades of experience in aviation says he hopes ‘common sense will prevail’ and the island’s runway will be extended to accommodate ATR aircraft.
Work begins on Monday to conduct urgent repairs to the existing runway, which has been welcomed by former Aurigny ground staff employee Steve Roberts, who is now a States member and also one of the island’s two representatives in the Guernsey Assembly.
‘We were promised the decision on a longer runway would not delay this work, so I’d like to see it concluded as soon as possible,’ he said.
‘And I fully support the longer runway. If it’s shown to be feasible, I’m 100% behind it.’
Guernsey’s Policy & Resources committee has commissioned a feasibility report on the possibility of extending the runway, which is expected to be published in the next couple of months.
The committee also announced last week that Aurigny would continue its commitment to providing flights on the Alderney-Guernsey and Alderney-Southampton routes for the next five years at least.
‘All successful airlines use only one type of aircraft,’ Mr Roberts said.
‘Going to an ATR-only fleet would make a big difference.’
He highlighted the additional costs of having to train pilots, engineers and legislation compliance staff to use both ATRs and Dorniers.
‘Aurigny is down to two Dorniers now but they’re not going to get any more. That would be sheer folly,’ he said.
An ATR will conduct a fly-past of Alderney’s runway, as part of the feasibility project. It is expected that the runway will need to be extended by a few hundred metres if the 72-seat aircraft is to land there. The weight of each aircraft is another consideration, with an ATR 72 weighing approximately three times more than a Dornier 228.
