Airport restriction lifted

2010-05-27 16:04

Cape Town – The South African Civil Aviation (SACAA) has lifted the restriction on the use of the George Airport runway during wet conditions.

This move follows tests that were witnessed by the SACAA’s airports team on Tuesday to determine the compliance of the newly resurfaced runway, the SACAA said in a statement.

"This is certainly a welcome move to all concerned, especially following what was undoubtedly a trying time," said SACAA general manager for air safety infrastructure Gawie Bestbier.

"The decision to lift this NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) was reached last night (on Wednesday) following a thorough assessment of friction and surface texture testing results."

In December last year, an SA Airlink plane travelling from Cape Town overshot the runway when it landed in rainy weather at the George Airport. The 30 passengers and three crew members were unhurt.

In February, 25 flights including one carrying Western Cape Premier Helen Zille could not land at the airport because it was closed due to rain.
 

- News24