Work on Runway 15 at Dominica International Airport progressing swiftly: CEO Johnson

CEO of the International Airport Development Company, Samuel Johnson, gave insights into the project’s current status in Dominica

Tuesday, 23rd April 2024

Work at Dominica International Airport progressing swiftly

Dominica: The Chief Executive Officer of the International Airport Development Company, Samuel Johnson, gave insights into the project’s current status in Dominica. He shed light on major aspects of the significant project, including ongoing work and design adjustments. The ongoing project in the Commonwealth of Dominica stretches across 22000 square meters and is going to give a major boost to the tourism section once completed. While giving the update, he said that the construction of runway 15 area continues as it is going to be the predominant landing and takeoff area. “The runway is designed to enable landing and takeoff in both directions, and because of the winds, we expect 95% of the time your landing will be from runway 15,” he noted. He said that this is why a lot of the work has been focused on clearing off this area and constructing proper alignment, following which the workers will work towards the end of the runway. The CEO explained the whole process of excavation and alignment, which is necessary for runway construction. He said that it would be used both for takeoffs and landings of the aircraft. Johnson said that a lot of excavation still needs to be done to get the desired level of land. He added that several culverts are also being constructed on the site, which will be used to handle the water. According to the CEO, after the culvert works are done, then some of the excavation from the terminal will be going towards the backfilling in some areas because there's a lot of excavation work that has to be done. In addition to this, alongside the runway, a parallel taxiway will also be built, which will give the airport in Dominica much more capacity to accommodate a number of aircraft at the same time. Samuel Johnson further noted that there are two other areas that are being constructed, including the quarry sites in Anzime and Crapo Hall. These have been developed to provide additional field material and aggregate in support of the project. While addressing the safety concerns, Johnson outlined, “We've gotten feedback in terms of the drivers and the truckers moving on the site, and we've worked closely with the contractor and the developer to ensure that there is GPS tracking on the drivers.” He said that sometimes there are competent local drives who are very comfortable with the roads and tend to drive a bit faster and added, “So that's something we've spoken to, to the contractor about in terms of ensuring that safety is not just on the site alone, but outside of the site as well.”

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CEO Johnson stressed that the team is committed to minimizing the impact on the locals and the tourism sector. He said that it is because they are working in a tourist area, and the reason behind building the airport is to boost tourism, which is why the team does not want to have the project negatively impact the very thing that it is aiming to grow. He also assured the general public that the team has collaborated with the Public Works Department to ensure that any damage on the roadways is maintained and brought back up to speed as quickly as possible. The CEO expressed his optimism about the ongoing work on the international airport project and said that it is on schedule with the work ongoing at a smooth pace.