Alor Setar airport runway may be reopened on Monday

 

Airport workers carrying out cleaning and repair works on the 2.7km-long runway at Alor Setar airport, which was submerged under 50cm of water during the recent floods. (Bernama pic)

ALOR SETAR: 

The runway at the airport here is expected to be reopened on Monday, after being closed since Nov 29 because of the monsoon floods.

A final decision will be made tomorrow, and airlines will decide whether to resume operations in and out of Alor Setar, airport manager Ikram Alif Mansoor said today. He said the airport handles an average of 20 to 24 flights a day.

While optimistic about reopening the runway, he said safety remains the priority.

“If necessary, we may extend the closure by one or two more days before operations can resume”, he said after briefing finance minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan.

“Cleaning works are continuing and equipment repairs are being carried out. The primary focus now is to clean critical areas, particularly the landing zones for aircraft, which have been cleaned,” he told reporters.

Ikram said tests are being conducted to assess the damage caused by the flood. “The runway stretches for 2.7km and was submerged under 50cm of water. The taxiway experienced flooding of up to 80cm, while the apron area was under 4cm of water,” he said. - FMT