Surat airport has shut down one of the two taxiways and its adjoining aprons for maintenance. According to the airport authorities, the taxiways will remain shut for 45 days, but it will not affect flight operations.
The ongoing maintenance work will help in improving the efficiency of the taxiways, according to an unnamed official at Surat airport. “The work will add to the existing infrastructure in multiple ways,” TOI quoted the official.
Surat airport has two taxiways – Alpha and Bravo. The extension of the apron area is completed till Bravo. The operations at Bravo are temporarily shut from January 27, 2022, to complete the extension work. According to Surat airport authorities, all stakeholders are kept informed about the progress of the work. All airlines are alerted about the development work for the safe operations of the aircraft.
Two taxiways will help in handling multiple aircraft. When one taxiway is used for arriving flights, the other can be used for the departing flight. Closing the Bravo taxiway will facilitate the execution of merging the ongoing extension of the apron and PTT work with the existing apron. Once completed, Surat airport will have six new parking stands for the A320 type of aircraft. In total, the airport will have 23 parking stands for A320 type aircraft.
Surat Airport is a Home For Birds
Surat airport is home to as many as 96 species of birds, according to a report released by Salim Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON). Besides birds, mongooses and snakes are also found around the airfield. SACON collected the data from December 2020 to March 2021 to identify the species. The incidents of bird-hit are common in Surat airport. The report was submitted to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to implement strategies to manage wildlife.
AAI invited SACON to conduct a comprehensive study at the airport to identify problematic birds and suggest measures to reduce the bird-hit incidents. One reason for the high wildlife and birds around Surat airport is its location. The airport is surrounded by wetlands, water bodies and seacoast, providing surplus food and water resources for wildlife.
Besides the scheduled flights, Surat airport also operates chartered flights of companies and other VVIPs.
