Bihar Identifies Land for Runway Extension

The civil aviation department (CAD) and the Patna district administration have identified land for extension of the runway at Patna's Jayprakash Narayan International (JPNI) airport and suggested construction of an underpass each for vehicular movement on either ends of the runway, outside the airport campus, besides whittling down the height of the clock tower atop the state secretariat to ensure safe air operations, said officials in Patna on Monday.

- Ruchir Kumar

PATNA:

The short runway length and obstacles, including trees, clock tower, mobile towers and multistoried buildings, on either side of the runway, make for a steeper glide slope of 3.15 degrees against the usual 3 degrees for any descending aircraft, classifying Patna among 11 critical airports in India.

A joint team of CAD, headed by special secretary Nilesh Ramachandra Deore and Patna's DM Thiyagarajan SM, identified small chunks of vacant land measuring 14.5 acres of the animal and fisheries resource department on Runway 07 (Phulwarisharif end) and another 15 acres on Runway 25, to the corner of Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park (Patna zoo), for extension of the existing runway from 2,072 m to 2,600 m.