Message posted by Peter Merlin on December 26, 2006 at 18:47:53 PST:
According to the Area 51 Standard Operating Procedures, Landing Area Rules, dated 1 December 1968, runway 14/32 was 8,625 feet long with a 6,000 foot asphalt extension to a concrete turnaround pad followed by another 5,000 feet of asphalt. The asphalt overrun was not lighted, and therefore not considered "remaining runway" during hours of darkness. The south end of the concrete runway was extended about 5,000 feet during the 1980s because flooding at the south end of Groom Lake was damaging the north end of the airstrip. The lakebed extension was intended as emergency overrun. In the event that it wasn't enough, a pilot could turn onto the Abort Circle (known as "The Hook") painted on the lakebed. The lakebed is also marked with runways in case crosswinds are too high to allow use of the concrete runway.
In Reply to: runways at groom... posted by Alex (UK) on December 26, 2006 at 18:25:11 PST:
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