At Dublin Airport, maintaining the safety of passengers and staff is essential. Runway maintenance is crucial to our operations and helps ensure compliance with EU regulations, while maintaining the highest safety and efficiency standards.
Dublin Airport regularly conducts maintenance to meet EU Regulation 139/2014 and follows guidance from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in this regard.
Types of Runway Maintenance
Runway maintenance is critical for the safe operation of Dublin Airport. Our maintenance activities vary but can include:
- Assessment and Replacement of Visual Aids and Lighting Systems: Ensuring optimal performance of runway lights and visual guidance systems, especially important for night-time and low-visibility operations.
- Pavement Strength and Friction Assessments: Monitoring the runway surface to ensure it remains in a safe condition for aircraft landings and take-offs.
- Rubber Removal: Clearing rubber deposits from aircraft landings to maintain appropriate runway friction levels.
- Repainting of Runway Markings: Refreshing vital runway markings that guide aircraft during take-off, landing, and taxiing.
- Grass Cutting Around Critical Areas: Regularly trimming grass around the runways and taxiways to prevent interference with airport operations.
Schedule of Essential Maintenance
Scheduled maintenance takes place approximately six times a year, over four consecutive nights. These works are typically scheduled between 11.00 pm and 05.00 am, when there is a low level of flight activity. It is not possible to complete these works during the day when there is a high level of scheduled flights.
Essential maintenance works are subject to weather conditions and should conditions deteriorate, in advance or on the night, works are deferred to another date.
Scheduled Maintenance Works for 2024
Proposed Dates* | Number of Nights | Runway Closure Requirements |
22 January 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
11 March 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
13 May 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
24 June 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
26 August 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
20 October 2024 | 4 nights | Essential Maintenance Works on South Runway |
Notification of Essential Maintenance
We communicate upcoming maintenance dates and times in advance via an email notification to local community groups, and runway information subscribers. Additionally, these notifications are posted on our website here and on WebTrak, our flight tracking online system. Updates are provided in the event of any changes due to weather or operational requirements.
Should you wish to subscribe to receive these notifications, please complete the form below.
Permitted Runway Use
When the South Runway is undergoing essential maintenance works, the North Runway is used to maintain flight operations. Prior to the North Runway opening, the Crosswind Runway was used for this purpose. However, this runway is now primarily used as a taxiway as stipulated under planning.
It is also important to note that the use of the North Runway for the purposes of essential maintenance works is permitted under planning conditions.
Noise and Community Considerations
Dublin Airport is aware that essential runway maintenance can lead to an increase in noise levels for some local residents, especially when flight operations move to the North Runway. We endeavour to schedule these works in such a way as to avoid school holidays, public holidays, etc, to minimise any impact. We also work to get works done as efficiently as possible on the night so that we can return to normal operations as soon as practicable.
Testing
In addition to essential maintenance, Dublin Airport conducts mandatory flight checks for its Instrument Landing Systems (ILS) biannually. These checks are essential to ensure compliance with European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) regulations, as mandated by the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA).
During these checks, a small twin-engine aircraft performs multiple approaches to each end of the North Runway (10L/28R), the Crosswind Runway (16/34), and the South Runway (10R/28L), flying no lower than 100 feet. The aircraft then makes several passes of each runway at approximately 50 feet. These tests, usually conducted over three consecutive nights between 11 PM and 6 AM, help maintain the accuracy and reliability of the ILS, which is crucial for safe landings in poor visibility.
Additionally, the South Runway (10R/28L) might be temporarily closed for daylight inspections, with the North Runway (10L/28R) handling all operations during such times. These procedures are vital for ensuring the safety and efficiency of flight operations at Dublin Airport.
Proposed Dates* | Number of Nights | Runway Closure Requirements |
27 February 2024 | 3 nights | Instrument Landing Systems Biannual checks on all runways |
October 2024 (date TBC) | 3 nights | Instrument Landing Systems Biannual checks on all runways |
