Ribbon-cutting ceremony marks completion of runway restoration

Courtesy Photo | The E-3A Component held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Sept. 22, 2014, at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen, Germany, to signify the completion of its runway restoration project. (Photo by Andrea Hohenforst)  

GEILENKIRCHEN, NW, GERMANY

09.22.2014

Story by Staff Sgt. Richard Longoria 

NATO E-3A Component

GEILENKIRCHEN, Germany - The E-3A Component held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Sept. 22, 2014, at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen, Germany, to signify the completion of its runway restoration project.

The ceremony marks the end of a project that started at the beginning of May to resurface the top portion of the Component’s 30-year-old runway with 30 centimeters of asphalt.

“Today is a very special day for the Component because we completed a something that has never been done here before,” said Col. Frank Samuelson, the Component’s Logistics Wing commander. “We've built new buildings; we've upgrade our aircraft, but we've never restored our runway.”

The original runway was constructed in the early 1980s and was only expected to last about 20 years. Patch-work was completed to extend the life of the runway, but the time had come for a complete resurfacing. The restoration project eliminated the concrete surface which had started to deteriorate over the past several years.

In total, resurfacing the 3,048 meter runway took approximately 125,000 tons of asphalt, more than 19,000 tons of subsoil and over six kilometers of drainage.

“With the completion of this project, it is expected that the Component can safely operate out of Geilenkirchen for at least another 20 years,” Col. Samuelson said.

The runway restoration project was completed by using work cycles consisting of 11 work days and three fly days.

“We couldn't simply close our runway for six months and that made this project very challenging for everyone involved,” Col. Samuelson said. “I can assure you there were serious concerns about the feasibility of the project phase schedule.”

The colonel explained that the construction company, Bunte, was very helpful. “There were no major show stoppers,” he said. “In fact, the two words we heard from them the most were kein Problem.”

• Date Taken: 09.22.2014
• Date Posted: 09.22.2014 09:12
• Story ID: 142862
• Location: GEILENKIRCHEN, NW, DE