Swedish proposal shelved (for now)

Swedish proposal shelved (for now)

Easier to land and take-off but harder to achieve

Paro Airport: No second runaway for now

Second Runway 15 January, 2011 - Households and resorts located in the immediate vicinity of Paro airport can breathe a sigh of relief. A Swedish proposal to build a second runway at Paro airport, which would have caused them to be displaced, has been shelved, according to the department of civil aviation (DCA).

The proposal for a second runway was conceived in response to a DCA request to explore ways to make approaches and take-offs at the airport easier. Surrounding terrain at Paro airport makes it one of the most challenging airports for approach and take-off.The proposal suggested a second runway to be built in an intersecting configuration on the present runway. The direction of the second runway would be slightly rotated clockwise from the present runway.Currently, aircraft like Drukairs airbus A319s have to carry out a number of manoeuvres, almost till touchdown, because of hills located at either end of the runway. On take-off, aircraft also have to turn almost immediately after leaving the ground because of the hills. The direction of the second runway would allow aircraft landing or taking-off to avoid having to dodge the hills located on both ends of the runway.Itll be nice but its not going to happen any time soon, because of the displacement of the social dwellings, said DCA director general, Phala Dorji. Estimated at USD 11M, costs also were another obstacle. Phala Dorji explained that, not only would the second runway have caused social displacement, but river diversion and land reclaiming would also have to be carried out. The present VIP terminal and access road would also have to be relocated. Its a huge expenditure, he said.But the director general also said that, while the proposal may have been dropped for the 10th FYP, we may have to revisit it! in the future.Asked whether this was because the present runway is unsafe or dangerous, the director general said, Pilots are comfortable with the present procedures, it may be difficult, but not dangerous. He also pointed out, How can it be dangerous? Weve been operating for the past 20 years.While the proposal for a second runway has been dropped, DCA is studying the option of installing lights at either side of the runway to enhance visibility for pilots.By Gyalsten K Dorji



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

For err... and ever

For err... and ever Yearender 5 February, 2011 - Kuensel newsroom employees could go broke in the year of the Rabbit. Errors made by the reporter, editor, copy editor and layout designer will be counted in cash. Factual errors and layout errors will cost Nu 100, typos and grammatical errors Nu 50 and headline errors Nu 200. With errors featuring in the paper day after day, year after year the news team felt that something drastic had to be done if it were to make an improvement. In the year of the tiger errors were as plenty and glaring as the stripes of the magnificent beast.One victim of the errors was access to facebook from office, the contagious social networking site. This came after an edition carried an incomplete story that had readers calling up gleefully to find out if a part two was in the pipeline. The next issue carried a rejoinder saying The following paragraphs were inadvertently deleted from the story.... The mistake, it was agreed happened, because facebook had dist...
Keep reading

Two constituencies made the difference

Image
Two constituencies made the difference Polling officers wait for voters in Bangtsho demkhong in Dewathang Thromde election 22 January, 2011 - It came as a big blow to him. He was already lagging behind and the loss from his own constituency just made it worse. The frowns on the forehead deepened. Karma was surprised as polling results poured into the counting centre. In the first polling result, he lost by a vote, and then the most shocking result came in from Samdrupgatshel, his own constituency. He had lost by seven votes. The third one came and there too he had lost.Then, I got a little worried because the gap was increasing, he recalled later as he shared his moments with a friend over telephone. Then the results from other two demkhongs in Dewathang came in and that was enough. He beat rival candidate Dechen Wangmo with 50 votes in Kibse and 28 votes in Bangtsho demkhongs.Karma explains why he lost from the constituency he stood from. Im not originally from that place and people d...
Keep reading

Ending the even and odd game

Ending the even and odd game 25 January, 2011 - If you intend to make a trip to Tashichhodzong or the offices in the vicinity starting today, you no longer have to go through the calendar and make sure it matches your vehicle registration number. The entry system formulated in a manner that even numbered vehicle could be accommodated in the so called dzong parking area on even dates and odd numbers on odd dates has been lifted. With an intention to ease vehicle congestion and for security purposes, the traffic division of Royal Bhutan Police had initiated the rule in April 2009. Traffic superintendent, Passang Dorji, said the rule was being lifted after the completion of a new parking area near Royal Civil Service Commission office. The move was made after a thorough study. Passang Dorji said the traffic conducted a physical study focusing on the number of parking areas in relation to the number of vehicles entering and exiting the location.On an average, about 220 vehicles were parked...
Keep reading