Maintenance work on runway 25L/07R at Brussels Airport

Thorough inspections of runway 25L/07R carried out last week have shown that maintenance work was required in the short term to guarantee the good condition and safety of the runway. The closure of the runway, every afternoon and evening starting today, first to allow for further inspections and preliminary work, then for the actual work from 19 to 28 June, will have an impact on the runway use. Apart from the maintenance work, the runway use is also governed by the wind component, which has strongly impacted runway use these past few weeks. Brussels Airport and its partners are doing their utmost to minimise the impact of this work.

The runways and taxiways at Brussels Airport are constantly inspected by the competent services to guarantee their good condition and safety. If any damage to the asphalt is identified, an assessment is made as to the need for intervention and the delay within which these maintenance works should be carried out.

Last week, a thorough inspection of runway 25L/07R has shown that maintenance work was required to guarantee its good condition and the smooth running of operations. As well as normal wear and tear of the pavement, the deterioration of the runway could also be due to changing weather conditions, with heavy rainfall followed by increasingly high temperatures.

A detailed schedule for the additional work has been developed in consultation with skeyes and the partners at the airport, taking into account the flight schedules. Starting today and until completion of the work, runway 25L/07R will be closed every day from 12 noon to 5 am. In a first stage, the runway will be closed for further inspections and preliminary work. The actual work will start on 19 June and are scheduled to be completed on 28 June. Runway 01/19 is also impacted by the planned work and will be closed from 22 June to 28 June (same hours) because of an intervention at the intersection with runway 25L/07R.

The wind, an essential component of the PRS

This work will have an impact on runway use, which means that it will not always be possible to apply the PRS (Preferential Runway System). Brussels Airport will make every effort to limit the impact on operations and apply the PRS to a maximum, but the wind direction too plays an important role in the choice of runways. Works and wind conditions are indeed two elements that can impact the PRS. Weather conditions, and particularly wind conditions, are a decisive factor in the choice of runway configuration at every airport across the world to guarantee the safety of an aircraft, its passengers and the inhabitants of the overflown area. This means that in the event of strong east or north-east winds, as has been the case for several weeks now, air traffic controllers must activate an alternative configuration (runways 07L/R and/or 01).

*PRS : Preferential Runway System