The Portland Jetport will close to all air traffic overnights for the next several weeks. The closure will begin each night at 10:30 p.m. and last until 5:45 a.m. the next morning. The closures are needed so work can proceed on re-paving the main, east-west runway at the airport.
Flights have been using the airport's north-south runway during the project, but Jetport Manager Paul Bradbury says that the runways intersect. The closure could affect late night flights that are delayed for any reason. Because the north-south runway is shorter and lacks an instrument landing system, bad weather has caused some delays or cancellation during the runway re-paving, which began in April.
Bradbury says the project has also proved more complex that expected. Contractors had to pour concrete to protect two Portland Pipe Line Crude oil pipelines that run under the airport runways. But Bradbury says workers are still on track to finish the project by mid-June, when the overnight airport closure will end.
