The beginning of one of the largest and most challenging construction projects in the 71-year history of Dresden Airport, the redevelopment and extension of the runway, was marked today by a symbolic first cut with a spade. A new, 2,850 m-long runway of high-strength concrete will be built parallel to the existing strip until September 2007. Dresden Airport is the first airport in Europe to reconstruct its runway during full operation. Construction costs for the building project amount to Euro 52 million.

About 300 high-ranking guests from public administration and economy took part in the ground-breaking ceremony, among them Thomas Jurk, Deputy Minister-President of Saxony and Saxon Minister of State for Labour and Economic Affairs, and Dr Hans-Joachim Gottschalk, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of State Development and Transport of Saxony Anhalt.

Thomas Jurk, Deputy Minister-President of Saxony and Saxon Minister of State for Labour and Economic Affairs: "The new 2,850 m-long runway makes Dresden Airport even more attractive for medium distance traffic. The high maintenance expenses year by year made the reconstruction indispensable, and the decision to combine this project with an extension of the runway was just natural and reasonable. Flights to popular holiday destinations will become more efficient, which makes them less expensive. Aeronautical engineering firms at the airport, such as EADS Elbe Flugzeugwerke, will also benefit from an up-to-date runway. They can offer a greater range of services and improve their chances to get new orders. This saves existing qualified jobs and creates new ones, and it generally strengthens the business location Dresden."

Michael Hupe, Managing Director of Flughafen Dresden GmbH: "With this construction project, we make the airport of the Saxon state capital fit for the future, both functionally and strategically. We will be able to ensure that aircraft can fly to the holiday destinations without restrictions on the number of passengers or baggage load under all weather conditions. In addition, we support the aeronautical industry, which runs many production facilities around the airport, in their long-term development plans. Once the building work is finished the upgrading of Dresden Airport will be complete. Our infrastructure will then have everything a modern and efficient airport needs to be competitive: a high-performance runway, a multifunctional terminal with all facilities within easy reach and excellent transport links to the road and rail networks."

The project: "Redevelopment and extension of the runway at Dresden Airport"

There is no alternative anymore to the redevelopment and extension of the runway, which was already built in 1955. Although it was overhauled twice, in 1974 and 1988/89, damage has become visible again just a few years later. Since the political turn in 1989/90, the number of take-offs and landings in Dresden has risen manifold to more than 36,000 per year. The pavement material used then is increasingly becoming incapable to bear the strain of today's air traffic.

For several years now, extensive repairs have been performed at nights frequently and cracks in the concrete surface have been sealed to guarantee operational reliability at any time. However, expert's reports have shown that there is no alternative to a substantial redevelopment. The necessary planning approval procedure was completed by the Dresden Regional Council in October 2005 after just ten months.

Now the entire base course and pavement will be renewed so that the new runway can be used for at least 30 years. With a total length of 2,850 metres, the new runway will be 350 metres longer than the old one. The width will be reduced by 20 metres to 60 metres. The new runway will be built 70.5 metres beside the old one in the north-western direction, so that airport operation can continue during the construction phase, albeit with some restrictions.

The construction of the new runway will be accompanied by an adaptation of the existing taxiways, lighting installations, rainwater drainage systems and instrument approach aids. Moreover, the circular road will be renewed. Finally, the old runway will be demolished and the area will be vegetated. Up to 300 workers and 90 trucks will be in action at the same time in the next few months.

Extending the runway does not mean to extend the airport's capacity. This project is meant to improve the airport's attractiveness for the airlines and allows greater operational flexibility for the types of aircraft which already operate at the airport today. Load restrictions under certain weather conditions and additional fuelling stops on medium-haul connections (in particular to the Canary Islands and to Egypt) will then become a thing of the past. The decision to extend the runway does not effect a change in the strategic orientation of Dresden Airport. It will continue to be integrated into a continental route network.

The development of the runway is not only a transport decision, it is also an industrial decision. Providing the infrastructure for a further development of Dresden's aeronautical industry is a major aspect. If companies like EADS Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH, IMA Material¬forschung und Anwendungs¬technik GmbH and IABG Industrie¬anlagen- Betriebs¬gesellschaft mbH want to continue their activities in the fields of engineering, maintenance and testing of large aircraft in the future, it must of course be possible for these aircraft to land and to take off in Dresden.

Once the work on the new runway is completed, about Euro 500 million will have been invested in the infrastructure at the airport since the reunification of Germany in 1990. Over the past years, a new terminal building capable of handling up to 3.5 million passengers per year, an underground urban railway station, a multi-storey car park with 1,559 parking spaces, a new tower, a hangar for small planes, a new fire station and a high-tech centre for the international logistics service provider Schenker were built. Moreover, a modern hangar is being erected at the airport for police and rescue service helicopters; work on this project is planned to be completed by the end of 2006.

Dresden Airport also provides a documentation of its building activities on the internet on www.dresden-airport.de. Information about the current state of work, answers on frequently asked questions, a brief history of the runway as well as newspaper articles, interviews and opinions on the building project can be found under ‘Project runway'.

The runway project in facts and figures

• Start of planning activities: 1/2004
• Project approval procedure: 12/2004 - 10/2005
• Project approval granted: 25 October 2005
• Commencement of preparatory work: 7/2006
• Start of concrete laying work: 6/2007
• Commissioning: 9/2007
• Completion of construction work: 12/2007

• Size of old runway: 2,500 m long, 80 m total width, of which 51 m usable width
• Size of new runway: 2,850 m long, 60 m wide, entire width can be used
• Operating times: 24 hours
• Concrete life: about 30 years

• Total thickness, of which: 100 cm
• Concrete pavement: 40 cm
• Waterbound upper base course: 15 cm
• Anti-freeze course: 45 cm

• Excavation: approx. 800,000 m³
• Volume of concrete: approx. 90,000 m³
• Waterbound upper base course: approx. 36,000 m³
• Anti-freeze course: approx. 115,000 m³
• Total costs: approx. Euro 52 million
• Construction workers: 150 to 300

Last update : 02-07-2007 21:30

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