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Construction projects at Tallinn Airport

Airside Area

The project to develop Tallinn Airport’s airside area – representing one of the airport’s biggest investments in infrastructure development in the last decade – has now been completed. The cost of the project came to almost 74 million euros, of which the EU Cohesion Fund co-financed eligible activities to the value of 35 million euros.

As a result of this large-scale project, the environmental condition of the airport has improved, aviation safety has been enhanced and the airport’s capacity has been boosted. In order to ensure that the airport’s operations went uninterrupted during construction, the work was carried out in stages from 2016-2017, 2020-2021 and 2022-2023. The airport remained fully open and continued to operate safely and without disruptions throughout.

The project saw the reconstruction and extension of the airport’s runway to a total length of 3480 metres, while aircraft now also have the use of a new apron area (Apron K) on the southern side of the airport. New taxiways, a de-icing area on the eastern side of the airport and a testing area for aircraft engines have also been constructed. Furthermore, the apron surfaces were reconstructed, as were their rainwater systems. As a result of the project, ILS navigation equipment is in use at the airport, covering sensitive and critical areas. An airport lighting system based on new LED technology and a lighting management system have also been successfully introduced. Moreover, a new system of patrol routes has been launched for patrol and maintenance vehicles, and a security fence meeting all requirements has been erected along the perimeter of the airfield.

Also built as part of the project were new snow-collection areas in which the seasonal separation and channelling of meltwater into the sewage system takes place. The project likewise involved the construction of complex rainwater systems on a huge scale: a number of oil separators were installed around the airport, new purging sites were established and new fire hydrants were put in place. The reconstruction of rainwater systems will contribute to eliminating the issue of excess rainwater on airport grounds, which will extend the service life of utility networks and maintain the quality of the newly built infrastructure.

Construction of the renewed infrastructure was performed by the following contractors:
Stage 1 (2016-2017): AS Lemminkäinen Eesti
Stage 2 (2019-2021): KMG Inseneriehituse AS & Verston Ehitus OÜ
Stage 3 (2022-2023): AS TREV-2 Grupp

Owner’s supervision and FIDIC engineering services were provided by Taalri Varahalduse AS.

The preliminary designs for the project were drafted by Ramboll Eesti OÜ and K-Projekt AS.

In addition to the expansion of the airside area, warehouses for maintenance service reagents and for storing and handling the airport’s de-icing chemicals were built and the following maintenance and rescue service equipment was acquired as part of the project:

  • 6 sets of runway snow plows and machinery
  • self-propelled snow blower
  • chemical spreader
  • runway vacuum cleaning set
  • equipment set for moving stationary aircraft
  • fire and rescue vehicle
  • mobile device for measuring luminous intensity of lights

A dedicated project group incorporating employees from many fields in Tallinn Airport was formed for the coordinated team and execution of the project. Also actively involved in the project during the construction period were the airport’s partners Lennuliiklusteeninduse AS (Estonian Air Navigation Services), G4S and the Aviation Division of the Estonian Transport Administration.

The infrastructure completed as part of the project is of importance to Estonia as a whole as it not only guarantees a safe and environmentally friendly gateway for passengers and the companies operating at the airport but also contributes to connecting Estonia to the rest of the world.

Environment

  • We built snow-melting sites that meet environmental requirements.
  • We built a system for extracting and monitoring snow-melting water, rainwater and de-icing fluids.
  • We restored and expanded the drainage canal systems to resolve issues related to excess rainwater.
  • We built an additional aircraft de-icing area to improve the environmental condition.
  • We built new purging sites and fire water hydrants and installed oil separators.
  • We seasonally separate meltwaters from snow storage areas and redirect it into the sewage.
  • We built noise barriers around the engine testing area.

Capacity

  • We extended the runway to 3480 metres.
  • We reconstructed the pavement.
  • We improved the system of taxiways and aircraft aprons.
  • We built a runway shoulder that complies with requirements.
  • We built new taxiways on the southern side and expanded apron K.
  • We built the final configuration of the eastern de-icing area with a taxiway connecting to the runway.

Safety

  • We installed higher category approach lights and navigation systems.
  • During construction, we replaced the airport lighting system with one that is more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly and updated the lighting control system.
  • We built a testing area for aircraft engines that complies with safety requirements.
  • We reinforced the runway strip.
  • We built a new perimeter fence and reconstructed the perimeter roads.
  • We improved the taxiway, apron and general aviation areas.
  • We cleared the forest in the limited management zone to reduce the obstruction area in order to improve the reliability of ILS.