Engineers have been carrying out a detailed ground investigation survey at Alderney Airport as part of the design phase for the Runway Rehabilitation Project.
No start date has been given for that work yet, but Guernsey Ports said it is currently developing designs for the full rehabilitation of the current asphalt runway, taxiway and apron.
The details from the survey will help inform the design of the foundation and base layers that will be required for the new runway and taxiways.
Although surveys have previously been carried out, the current stage of the project requires further detailed data. That information will feed into the engineering design work to provide precise information on soil strength and load-bearing capacity at specific points along the runway and apron.
Geomarine did the survey last week, under the direction of project designers RPS, using a mechanical excavator to dig a series of trial holes on either side of the asphalt runway, and at each end, as well as alongside the taxiway.
That was intended to give the engineers a chance to measure the properties of the surrounding soil, so they can get a clear indication of what lies beneath the current hard surfaced areas.
At each location, detailed measurements were taken at various depths, up to two metres below the surface. This included load bearing capacity and likely settlement characteristics.
The current design work will help to inform the proposals for Alderney that the Policy & Resources Committee will present to the States of Deliberation.
Various maintenance works have also been carried out on the runway and taxiway this year, to maintain the safety, reliability, and integrity of the current aerodrome infrastructure.