Shenzhen Airport's third runway navigation lights officially illuminated

Over 4,700 sets of colorful lights shone brilliantly, outlining the majestic outline of the third runway on the east bank of the Pearl River Estuary. The successful illumination of the navigation lights marks the final stage of construction for the third runway project, laying a solid foundation for the runway's on-schedule commissioning.

The third runway project at Shenzhen Airport is a major national and Guangdong provincial project. Located between the second runway and the Yanjiang Expressway, parallel to the west side of the second runway, it is 3,600 meters long and 45 meters wide. The airfield is built to the highest 4F grade, capable of accommodating the takeoff and landing of various large passenger aircraft, including the world's largest passenger aircraft, the A380. Upon completion and commissioning, the third runway will further enhance Shenzhen Airport's operational support capabilities and strongly support the development of the Shenzhen International Aviation Hub and the world-class airport cluster in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The third runway project completed land reclamation and soft foundation treatment in June 2024, officially entering the airport construction phase. Since the start of the airport project, Shenzhen Airport has overcome difficulties, met deadlines, and worked at full capacity to accelerate project construction. Key milestones, such as the completion of the main runway and the activation of the navigation lights, have been completed ahead of schedule. As construction enters its final stages, calibration flights, final acceptance inspections, test flights, and industry acceptance inspections will be gradually implemented.

What is the navigation lighting system?

The navigation lighting system provides visual guidance for aircraft takeoff, landing, and taxiing at night or in low-visibility conditions. Known as a pilot's "third eye," it is a critical system for ensuring flight safety.

The navigation lighting system for the Shenzhen Airport third runway project includes two lighting stations, a precision approach lighting system, a runway lighting system, a taxiway lighting system, an advanced ground guidance and control system, and a runway status lighting system. It involves 67 navigation lighting circuits, over 4,700 sets of various navigation lighting fixtures, over 400 kilometers of lighting cabling, and nearly 100 sets of power supply equipment within the new lighting stations.

During the construction period, Shenzhen Airport and all participating units optimized the construction process. The deep barrel lamp model was adopted for all lighting fixtures, which not only saved construction costs and reduced energy loss, but also improved installation efficiency. Nearly 380 cable wells in the entire venue were prefabricated and hoisted, which not only improved construction efficiency but also reduced the safety risks brought by personnel working in deep foundation pits. The lighting and power supply pipelines used BIM technology to assist in the construction, effectively solving the problem of cross-collision of multi-professional pipelines.