Heavy planes prompt cracks
KATHMANDU:
Increased operation of large planes after the earthquake of April 25 has caused damage to the runway of Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA). This has prompted the government to restrict cargo and chartered aircraft weighing more than 196 tonnes at TIA.
Following the devastating earthquake, the international community had started to pour in to provide rescue support and relief materials, creating huge air traffic congestion in country’s sole international airport. The decision to ban non-commercial big aircraft with over 196 tonnes of maximum take-off weight (MTOW) was taken after a technical assessment of the runway.
As a result of the movement of heavy aircraft laden with rescue teams and humanitarian aid, the runway has started to develop cracks and is peeling off, according to TIA officials.
However, this is not the first time the runway has developed cracks. In 2011 and again in 2013, the airport had faced similar problems, for which, the TIA authorities had to restrict operation of wide-body planes. The airport is expected to resume normal operations soon as the number of non-commercial flights is now declining.
“The restriction will be effective until May 15,” said Debendra Pandey, duty officer of the International Terminal Management Sector at TIA. The decision was taken on May 1 but only made public today.
There is no restriction in operation of commercial flights by wide-body aircraft. The runway was built primarily for narrow-body planes. Earlier, a survey conducted by a Spanish consultant for the government had also concluded that the damage to the lower asphalt layers by heavy aircraft had led to cracks on the upper surface.
According to TIA officials, the fresh ban has been imposed targeting large planes to prevent the runway from deteriorating further. In September 2013, airline companies operating flights with wide-body aircraft had also been asked to provide service with narrow-body planes.
Currently, Turkish Airlines, Air Asia and Thai Airways, among others have been operating commercial flights to Nepal with large aircraft.
In the last one week, the airport saw movement of around 500 non-commercial flights, including cargo and chartered flights carrying rescue teams, relief materials and medicines. During this period, aircraft type such as Boeing 747-400, Airbus A350 and Ilyushin Il-76, MD 11 and C-17 that have capacity of over 196 tonnes of MTOW, landed and took off from the TIA.
Meanwhile, airline companies have stated that service has gradually returned to normal to and from TIA, with the number of non-commercial flights coming down. After the congestion, TIA management had also decided to keep the airport open for 24 hours.
Source: THT
