Runway Upgrades at 9 Greek Regional Airports Begin from November

Zakynthos Airport. Photo source: Intrakat

After completing the second phase of runway upgrades, Fraport Greece will move to the third phase of construction at nine regional airports nationwide.

Runway construction works that entered the third phase concern the airports of Zakynthos, Kavala, Kefalonia, Corfu, Mykonos, Santorini, Samos, Rhodes, and Mytilene.

During the runway upgrades, all commercial and private flights will be temporarily halted.

According to Fraport Greece, the suspension of the runways’ operation is necessary due to the size and complexity of the project.

“Nevertheless, according to the planning, the specified intervals are the shortest possible period during which the runways can be suspended,” the airport operator said in a company announcement.

The suspension dates of runway operations, per airport, are presented in detail in the following table.

During the periods mentioned above, helicopters will carry out emergency flights such as ambulance helicopters for patients’ airlifts, search and rescue, firefighting, humanitarian, government and other national flights if required. In addition, all other airport services within the terminals, will be available to the public.

According to Fraport Greece, the runway reconstruction works aim to further enhance the already high level of safety and include, among others, extensive interventions to reconfigure the Runway Strips and the Runway Safety Areas (RESA).

Kefalonia Airport. Photo source: Intrakat

The upgrade works to the runways form part of the concession agreement between Fraport Greece and the Greek state. “They are carried out under sustainable conditions and respect for the land, as supporting sustainable development and social responsibility are Fraport Greece’s highest priorities,” the company said.

Focused on safety and compliance, these works are part of Fraport Greece’s plan to enhance operations at the 14 regional airports under its management. All projects are funded by the Recovery and Resilience Fund.