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Large planes disallowed from landing at Goose Bay airport due to deteriorating runway

Heavy aircraft are being told to stay away from the Goose Bay airport due to the deteriorating condition of its runways.

"All airfields need ongoing maintenance so deterioration is to be expected but given our conditions here in Labrador, it's been faster than we expected," Base Commander Lt.-Col. Stephane Racle said.

Jacob Barker/CBC
Jacob Barker/CBC

While the restrictions will not affect smaller planes such as Dash-8s and Twin Otters that service regularly scheduled flights in Labrador, large passenger jets such as Boeing 747s and 777s looking for a place to stop for fuel on their way across the Atlantic should look elsewhere for now.

"We've imposed some restrictions to ensure some aircraft that could cause some damage to the runway don't land," Racle said, adding that in the case of an emergency any plane can land on either of the airport's two runways.

He also said that an Norwegian Air jet which has been stuck at the Goose Bay airport awaiting a new engine for more than a week will be allowed to take off once it's fixed.

Jacob Barker/CBC
Jacob Barker/CBC

Added stress

Racle said that warming temperatures and thawing that comes in the spring does put a lot of added stress on the airfield.

The concerns have to do with the surface of the airfield as well as the underlying concrete. He says there is cracking, which is in turn causing some pieces of the runway and sealant to come loose.

Jacob Barker/CBC
Jacob Barker/CBC

"We must be very vigilant and we ensure that we look at the condition of the airfield on a regular basis, multiple times a day to ensure that we catch any loose debris that could cause problems," Racle said. "There have been some [pieces] that have been picked up, definitely."

No connection

This issue has nothing to do with issues that shut down the airport completely for several days in November of 2017 according to Racle. He said that issue "was particularly due to a bad batch of sealant" and "all that sealant has been completely removed."

Jacob Barker/CBC
Jacob Barker/CBC

The restrictions which were put in place on May 17th are scheduled to last until mid-August. Racle would not speculate on whether the issue would be resolved by then but did say that there is a plan in the works within the Department of Defence to make the airfield safe again for the larger planes.

"That's going to come in the future but it's, again, looking at the viability of ensuring that we can safely operate out of Goose Bay," Racle said.