Safety warning issued at Waterford Airport as runway construction continues

A safety warning has been issued at Waterford Airport while construction works continue for the next 20-odd weeks.

Late last week a 'safety information notice' was posted to the airport's Facebook page, warning drone operators against using drones in the vicinity of Waterford Airport, as the airport and its surrounding airspace are still open during the current construction works.

The airport encourages anyone looking for further information to refer to the Irish Aviation Authority's drone regulations.

The current construction works taking place at the airport are expected to take another 29 to 30 weeks, according to William Bolster, Chief Executive at Waterford Airport.

In an interview with Ireland South MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, Mr Bolster said works have commenced on the southeast corner of the runway and are part of the preparation for the overall works the airport will require.

To allow for international air travel and passenger flights, he said: "The plan is we're lengthening the runway from 1460 meters up to 2300, and we're widening it from 30 to 45."

"We're kind of setting ourselves a goal of a year but that will depend on weather, depend on contractors, depend on a lot of different things."

Discussions with airline companies will run in tandem with construction works, he said, and have already started.

Mr Bolster also told MEP Ní Mhurchú: "We're hoping to go into planning for a new terminal extension in a couple of months' time."