Logan runway resurfacing could add weekend delays
Logan International Airport will close one of its four main jet runways on weekends through October for resurfacing, a project that could add delays for travelers arriving and departing on Saturdays and Sundays.
Edward C. Freni , the interim aviation director for the Massachusetts Port Authority , which runs Logan, said airport officials expect limiting the runway shutdowns to ``the relatively slow weekend travel period" should minimize delays.
But resurfacing work on the same runway last summer created -- or at least aggravated -- such massive delays that Massport finally decided to shut the runway down for one week of continuous reconstruction after attempting to get the work done during periodic closings. Last year, Massport scheduled closings both on weekdays and weekends, depending on favorable weather conditions for construction work. This year, closings will happen only on weekends.
The runway involved is called alternately 22 Left or 4 Right depending on which direction planes are taking off from and landing on it. It's 10,005 feet long and runs from southwest to northeast.
Last summer, repaving work on different parts of that same runway often coincided with periods when prevailing winds shifted to the northwest, a rare occurrence for this time of year that can lead to all but one of Logan's four big-jet runways being closed if winds get over about 10 nautical miles. That led to frequent reports of flights facing 15- to 30-minute delays and occasionally longer, as Logan's capacity to handle departing and arriving flights shrank and delays built up.
Massport aviation planning manager Flavio Leo said regardless of whether the 22L/4R runway is closed, periods of strong northwest winds would still require closing three runways to protect jets from being buffeted by excessive cross winds on takeoff and landing.
``Whether we're doing this work or not, we would still have the same potential issue with the northwest winds, independent of construction," Leo said. Logan's key change this year is avoiding runway closures during its busiest times -- such as Monday and Wednesday mornings -- which should go a long way toward avoiding delays, he added.
The runway closings will begin this weekend, lasting from 10 p.m. Friday through 6 a.m. Monday each weekend through Oct. 25.
Freni said residents of some communities under Logan flight paths, such as Winthrop, East Boston, Somerville, Jamaica Plain, and Dorchester, could notice increases in jet traffic overhead as flight patterns are shifted around to accommodate the runway work. People with complaints can call the Massport noise line at 617-561-3333 weekdays.
For the first six months of this year, Logan ranked fifth worst of the 31 biggest US airports for flight arrival delays, with 28.9 percent of flights landing 10 minutes or more after schedule. Logan was 11th worst for departures, with 22.6 percent of flights leaving late, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Late this year, after three decades of battles with community activists, Massport expects to open a 5,000-foot runway called 14/32 on the south side of Logan that will help reduce delays, including during strong northwest winds.
Massport has projected the new runway could shift 75,000 flights over Boston Harbor instead of land and reduce overall delays by 30 percent compared to 2010 projections, but community activists contend the runway will allow for far more total flights and noise.
Peter J. Howe can be reached at howe@globe.com. 
