London Luton Airport has completed a runway resurfacing programme valued at 18 million GBP and aimed at maintaining operational safety and performance.
The works were carried out over a five-month period through overnight closures, allowing the airport to continue daytime operations. Activity began each night shortly after midnight and concluded before the first scheduled departures in the morning.
The project involved a workforce of around 120 personnel per shift and the use of more than 120 vehicles and pieces of equipment. Coordination was required across multiple airport functions, including airfield operations, air traffic control, engineering, security and health and safety teams.
Marc Wolman, Infrastructure Director at London Luton Airport, commented:The resurfacing of the London Luton Airport runway was an immense, once in a generation project – the airport’s largest airfield engineering programme in two decades. A complex project of this scale will always present operational challenges and we are delighted to have delivered this critical piece of infrastructure safely, on time, on budget and with minimal impact on airfield operations or our neighbouring communities.
Now, after more than 18 months of meticulous planning and execution, LLA has a new runway in peak condition to ensure a safe, simple and friendly passenger experience for the millions of travellers who pass through the airport each year.
In addition to resurfacing the 2.16 km runway, the programme included the extension of a taxiway, replacement of more than 1,000 halogen runway lights with LED units, and installation of a new weather sensor to support forecasting.
The resurfacing works were delivered by Lagan Aviation & Infrastructure. Lagan has previously worked with the airport, including on its last runway refurbishment in 2006.
Brandi Davey, Project Manager from Lagan Aviation, commented:Lagan Aviation and Infrastructure are pleased to have completed the resurfacing of the runway at London Luton Airport, with over 130,000 hours of work to replace 30,000 tonnes of asphalt, and upgrade over 1,000 lights to LED. LLA is a longstanding client of Lagan, having completed its last runway refurbishment in 2006. This project has demonstrated what can be achieved with a shared goal, and a collaborative approach to project delivery. We look forward to future opportunities to continue this successful partnership, with LLA and its shareholders, AENA and Infrabridge.
