Milestone for runway works at RAF Lossiemouth as aircraft return

[bob_the_bomb]

IIRC 38 field RE relaid the runway at RAF Laarbruch in the early '80's.

Forrin’ parts though...and 38 Squadron was the Berlin squadron so unlikely. Perhaps 38 Regiment?

 

[Filthy_contract]

Don’t the Royal Engineers possess the skill set to do this sort of thing? Or is there another reason to spunk £75m on an external contractor?

They haven't got the capacity to resurface the operating surfaces of a Main Operating Base. They would have to contract it in, as well.

 

[Filthy_contract]

Good i hate having to deliver martials to lossie it is a pain in the arrse

Wot, like Air Marshals?

 

[Edwardian Fred]

In theory yes. There are certainly professionally qualified engineer officers and clerk of works (construction) who could do this. All sapper YO do a ‘plant, roads and airfields’ module which certainly used to include a bit on ‘aircraft quality pavement’.

But sappers don’t tend to get involved in civil works in the UK, and haven’t for generations.

Barracks construction etc (and airfields) in the UK have been the responsibility of the Ministry of Works since at least WW2, the MoE became the Department of the Environment, which by the 80s had become the Property Services Agency. Then stuff started getting privatised.

Ah. The PSA constantly striving to ensure the lowest possible standards for the highest cost and trouble to the contractor. Anyone remember the Dawn and Sunrise fiasco?

 

[dingerr]

They haven't got the capacity to resurface the operating surfaces of a Main Operating Base. They would have to contract it in, as well.

Thats poor and needs to change, if the RE stopped doing EOD, signals, vehicle repair, amphibious stuff, armoured stuff, para stuff, commando stuff and removed their fingers from all the other pies, leaving it to the experts, they could focus on engineering stuff

 

[AnotherBerliner]

Forrin’ parts though...and 38 Squadron was the Berlin squadron so unlikely. Perhaps 38 Regiment?

Yup, from 1959 up to 1990

 

[bob_the_bomb]

Thats poor and needs to change, if the RE stopped doing EOD, signals, vehicle repair, amphibious stuff, armoured stuff, para stuff, commando stuff and removed their fingers from all the other pies, leaving it to the experts, they could focus on engineering stuff

We like pies, remember?

We just don’t eat all of them like the RLC

 

[Berlin_104s]

And there were no pie shops handy! (although my mate who runs a nearby hotel could've made a fortune selling them)

Only one each, though!

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

 

[bobthebuilder]

In theory yes. There are certainly professionally qualified engineer officers and clerk of works (construction) who could do this. All sapper YO do a ‘plant, roads and airfields’ module which certainly used to include a bit on ‘aircraft quality pavement’.

But sappers don’t tend to get involved in civil works in the UK, and haven’t for generations.

Barracks construction etc (and airfields) in the UK have been the responsibility of the Ministry of Works since at least WW2, the MoE became the Department of the Environment, which by the 80s had become the Property Services Agency. Then stuff started getting privatised.

In theory no. The Corps never really had the capacity for permanent airfield pavement work. It fucked up Op Crown in the 60s and didn’t get invited to do Mount Pleasant. 38 (I think) made a mess of some minor taxiway work at Laarbruch in the 80s. I doubt there is anyone serving in the Corps today who has anything other than theoretical knowledge of airfield pavements. There might be one or two who have had peripheral experience of a pavement project.

Runway work is highly specialised. It requires specialist plant, experienced operators and very tight quality control.

The asphalt used on airfield pavements is Marshall Asphalt, a specialised product not normally used on roads. There are a handful of contractors in the UK who have the capability to lay Marshall Asphalt to pavement quality.

Most major airfields are resurfaced whilst active. The work is done at night and each stage is “ramped down” at dawn so that aircraft can fly. That wasn’t the case at Lossiemouth, where the aircraft left for the project. But the weather would have been very difficult; you can’t lay Marshall Asphalt in the rain.

If your having trouble sleeping, here’s the specification for Marshal Asphalt pavements.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/33545/spec_132009.pdf