Essential works to resurface Ballina-Byron Gateway Airport’s main runway have almost been completed, with a large team of workers doing a series of night shifts since early June to finish the mammoth task. The airport has continued operating normally during each day.
It’s been ten years since the last runway overlay work was done, and it is expected that the current works will extend the lifespan of the runway for another ten years.
Airport Manager Julie Stewart told The Echo that Ballina-Byron Gateway Airport is the third busiest in NSW (after Sydney and Newcastle) and is expected to get even busier over the next few years, with a big boost of visitor numbers since the height of the COVID pandemic.
She said the runway is 1,900 metres long, with the new asphalt being overlaid across the surface amounting to 15,500 tonnes. The specialist work crew has been laying about 1,000 tonnes each night, with 95 people on site per shift and a large number of vehicles also involved.
Asphalt mix is being made on site by a mobile plant. Stage by stage, the project involves building up, cleaning and strengthening the runway, then reinstating line markings and returning the runway back to full service at the end of each shift.
Modern LED lighting is also being installed on the runway, along with grooves to assist with friction and drainage.
Big job
The cost of the project is approximately $20 million, with $5.54 million coming from the federal government and the rest of the budget coming from the airport’s capital works program. Ballina-Byron Gateway Airport is owned and operated by Ballina Shire Council. Raw materials for the work have been drawn from Teven Quarry.
Julie Stewart explained that the contract for the resurfacing project was awarded to the company Fulton Hogan, which specialises in airport overlays and other civil construction work, with management assistance from Pitt & Sherry.
She said the last flood event made it clear that the runway needed greater flood resilience. The entire surface is now being raised 90 millimetres. Ms Stewart explained that the idea is not to accommodate bigger planes, but to maintain services for the existing fleet that visit the airport, along with anticipated extra traffic.
With the end of the epic resurfacing job in sight, she says it’s been a major undertaking for all concerned. ‘Yes, it’s one of these major projects that a lot of airports have to face, in their cycle of life. It’s an expensive project, but a very necessary one.’
Ms Stewart explained that each night the team are rolling fresh bitumen which smoothly ramps down to the existing runway, in sections, so aircraft passengers are not noticing any difference as they land.
‘I think it’s less than 2 percent, so it’s quite a shallow difference between the new runway and the old runway.’
Fortunately the weather has mostly been kind to the contractors, and the main work is expected to be finished over the next few days. Ms Stewart said that other trenching and upgrading work would continue after the runway overlay was done, but visitors to Ballina wouldn’t notice any delays in air services.
The airport is expecting extra traffic for Splendour in the Grass, and Jetstar is now requiring passengers to check in 40 minutes before flight time, which has made things even busier in what is traditionally a busy winter season.
Julie Stewart said that like many local employers, Ballina-Byron Gateway Airport is struggling to find enough workers to fulfil essential tasks, as visitor numbers to the region increase. ‘We’re actively looking for additional security screening staff to help us manage that process,’ she said.
Cohesive team
Watching the large Fulton Hogan team hard at work in the middle of the night in cold temperatures is an impressive sight, with everyone knowing their role and no need for anyone to be giving orders.
Multiple vehicles and operators interlock together as an apparently seamless unit, with all work completed during the hours of darkness each evening.
They have clearly done this sort of thing many times before, with regular team members drawn from south east Queensland and across the wider region.
After the resurfacing of Ballina-Byron Gateway Airport is completed, they will be moving on to other runways elsewhere in the country.
The team wanted to thank the people of Ballina for their hospitality and curiosity during the resurfacing project.
More photos below:
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