Damaged runway to be repaired by Friday - Bangkok Post
Suvarnabhumi Airport officials inspect Taxiway E21 on Tuesday following an incident involving an Emirates Airbus A380 superjumbo jet on Monday night. (Photo: Suvarnabhumi Airport Facebook) Suvarnabhumi airport expects to complete repairs to damaged taxiway E21 by Friday following an incident involving an Emirates Airbus A380 passenger jet.
The incident on Monday was the second aircraft taxiing mishap at the airport in five days, following a China Airlines plane becoming stuck on runway 02R on Oct 28.
The Emirates Airbus A380, operating flight EK373 from Bangkok to Dubai, was unable to continue taxiing on E21 at 9.11pm. Ground-handling operator Bangkok Flight Services towed the aircraft clear at 10.18pm, and it departed four minutes later.
An inspection found surface damage to part of taxiway E21. The airport attributed the damage to prolonged heavy rain and flooding, which may have caused water to accumulate beneath the ground and weakened the pavement under the aircraft's weight. The airport has launched a structural assessment of E21 and adjacent areas to check for further damage.
Repairs began at 7pm on Tuesday and should finish at 8am Friday. The work includes a curing period to allow the repaired pavement to gain sufficient strength. During the closure, aircraft will use the two remaining runways. Aeronautical Radio of Thailand says they have sufficient capacity to handle flights.
The airport is also preparing to open a newly completed extension of taxiway D near the damaged area. It is awaiting approval from the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand and will provide an additional route for aircraft accessing runway 02R-20L.
In the Oct 28 incident, a China Airlines Boeing 737-800 became stuck on a damaged section of runway 02R while preparing to take off for Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Five flights were delayed by about two hours.
