Mumbai airport successfully completes its runway maintenance in a bid to counter monsoon menace

Mumbai: In a bid to counter the monsoon, Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has successfully concluded its runway repair and maintenance work on Thursday. 

The CSMIA is the busiest single-runway airport in the world, with over 950 air traffic movements per day.

The maintenance work began at 11:00 in the morning and after a thorough assessment and evaluation of both the runways—RWY 14/32 & 09/27—it was said to be fully operational starting from 5:00 pm. 

“CSMIA's maintenance efforts prioritise operational efficiency and passenger convenience, with a focus on resilience against Mumbai rains,” an airport spokesperson said. 

Anticipating the challenges posed by Mumbai's monsoon season, CSMIA conducted multiple runway inspections to prepare for the monsoon.

Various pre-monsoon measures were implemented, including the identification and inspection of waterlogged areas, health checks of runways by both machine and manual observation to detect superficial cracks, disjoints, and texture irregularities. 

Additionally, close to 5,000 aeronautical ground lights on runways and taxiways were serviced and checked, along with the removal and repainting of 1,300 ground markings providing directional guidance to aircraft.

Furthermore, repair works around the runway, such as segregating electric cables for the primary and secondary runway, minor and major repairs on runway intersections, and complex tasks such as the Geotechnical survey by civil engineers for runway 14/32, were completed. 

To prevent waterlogging, over 2000 drains and duct banks across the runways were opened, inspected, and cleaned. This ensures the integrity of cables, underground utilities, and the proper functioning of the aeronautical lighting system essential for aircraft navigation. Additionally, associated activities such as grass cutting, chamfering, milling, and filling were also carried out swiftly and efficiently.