Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) completed re-carpeting work on its 2.45-km-long runway on May 28.
Aimed at meeting compliance norms laid down by the aviation safety regulator, the project was completed in 75 working days from March 10. The airport initiated the preliminary survey work about the project on January 27.
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MIA is the second busiest airport in Karnataka, handling about 36 aircraft movements every day. The airport used eight-and-a-half hours of NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) from 9.30 am to 6 pm each day to re-carpet the runway without impacting the operations of scheduled flights.
During the 75 days it took to complete the project, MIA kept the runway open daily for 18 domestic and international flights, on an average, during the remaining 14.5 hours of the day.
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The project saw the use of 81,696 tonnes of asphalt. This quantity of asphalt is equivalent to laying 82 km of road.
A media statement by MIA said the airport executive leadership has lauded the airport team for completing the project ahead of schedule. The leadership has also thanked the people of the region and the administration for their unwavering support and understanding for coping with the altered travel timings to make MIA the safest airport in India, it said.