Miserable July weather affects 224 flights at St. John's airport
July was a month of bad weather on the Avalon Peninsula, and the adverse conditions affected 224 flights at St. John's International Airport.
In an update, the St. John's Airport Authority said July's record-breaking poor weather, combined with ongoing runway construction work, meant a 92 per cent success rate for flights in that month.
Earlier this summer, the airport shut down its main runway to allow for upgrades and installation work.
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Recent weather conditions have caused headaches for travellers over the last month, including cancelled, delayed or diverted flights.
"Unpredictable and atypical weather during July impacted flight operations, especially during the two week construction of the intersection of the primary and secondary runways," read the statement.
"Extensive planning, scheduling and consultation took place over the last three years in preparing for the six-month closure of the primary runway this year."
However, the airport authority said that there were fewer disruptions than expected in June, with more than 98 per cent of flights arriving and departing on schedule.
Overall, 45 per cent of the construction work has been completed so far, despite challenging weather conditions through July.
The work is being done to install landing equipment that will increase the airport's usability from 93.8 per cent to 99 per cent, said the airport authority.
That equipment is expected to be operational in 2016.