A safe and well thought out solution has been found allowing the 5 Wing Goose Bay airfield to return to limited flight operations.
Runway 16/34 was active for a limited period of operation between the hours of 10 am and 2 pm today, Friday November 10, 2017. 5 Wing Goose Bay continues to communicate with the Goose Bay Airport Corporation allowing them to work with their commercial partners.
The return to partial operations will allow for a limited amount of safe passenger movement while simultaneously allowing the airfield experts to continue the necessary remediation work. The limited return to restricted operations will see the cleanup crews shift the location of their work during the time the runway is receiving aircraft. Work affecting the active runway will occur outside of active flying times. Remedying efforts will continue around the clock until complete.
There are several cleanup methods being implemented and investigated on the runways. Safety of those working on the runway and of arriving and departing passengers will be at the forefront of all decisions.
This is a starting point. Moving forward, plans are being developed and phased in with the goal of safely returning the runways to full operations. There remains work to be done and safety continues to be the highest priority. A timeline for a return to full operations is not yet available.
Quotes
“The team at 5 Wing Goose Bay and at 1 Canadian Air Division are working tirelessly towards finding the safest and quickest solution to returning the runways to full operational status. I’m pleased to announce that the work conducted to date has allowed us to initiate partial operations starting tomorrow. The work is not yet complete and your continued patience is requested as we work towards a return to normal operations in a safe and deliberate manner.”
Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Wedgwood, Wing Commander, 5 Wing Goose Bay