For the first time in India, a stretch of public road has been marked to function as an airstrip. The IAF has said that the runway would be nearly 3km long. The Uttar Pradesh Government has approved the project and the IAF will bear the cost of the project. The final meeting will be held on Monday to finalise the deal, according to the authorities.
The runway is expected to be wider than 50 metres, which is accounted for, as the six-lane expressway is 110 metres wide at present. It can be expanded to eight lanes if required. The road runway segment will not have any mobile towers, electricity poles or any structures that may disturb the flight path of a landing combat aircraft. Lighting at night will be provided by portable illumination systems. The dividers will also be designed in such a way that they can be removed when an aircraft is about to land.
Though it is the first time in India’s aviation history, road runways have been used since World War II. They also exist in many other countries. In Australia, several highway strips are used as emergency runways for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Sweden has been building highway strips since the 1960s; the Viggen fighter-bomber was specifically designed for operating on road runways.
Once finalised, the new IAF runway is expected to get a fire brigade station, police outposts and a world-class hospital, besides the landing and taking off strip.