At Camp Humpreys in South Korea earlier this week, workers stripping asphalt from the Desiderio Army Airfield runway as part of runway resurfacing project, set to finish in late April. The airfield is the Army's busiest outside the United States and is its premier helicopter base in South Korea. (Courtesy of F. Neil Neeley of the U.S. Army)
PYEONGTAEK, South Korea — Some military flights that normally would use Camp Humphreys are being routed to Osan Air Base and other airfields while the Army’s busiest overseas airfield undergoes weeks of runway repairs.
Work began earlier this week to resurface Desiderio Army Airfield’s 8,000-foot runway and one of four taxiways, said airfield manager John Albonetti.
The $600,000 project is expected to finish in late April, he said.
Until then, fixed-wing aircraft are using Osan Air Base or any one of several South Korean military airfields in the area, he said.
Helicopters making liftoffs or touchdowns will continue to use Humphreys, Albonetti said. But training flights that call for a larger space will be slated for Osan or South Korean fields until the project is done.
Once workers repave the surfaces, they’ll paint the markings required by federal regulations for leading aircraft “visually to the touchdown point,” Albonetti said.
Desiderio’s air traffic controllers have extensive experience dealing with helicopter operations, and the airfield is the Army’s premier facility for helicopter training missions that require pilots to fly on instruments.
“It supports all Army aviation on the peninsula,” Albonetti said. “When folks at Seoul Air Base … or any other location want to practice any kind of different helicopter maneuvers, they really want to come to here and use Camp Humphreys.”
