Runway

Runways are used by planes to take off and land at your airport. Runways must be connected to a Stand using Runway Entrances/Exits and Taxiways. They are placed as a single object and can be constructed with up to 25 contractors and require 20000 construction energy.

Runways come in three sizes:


 * Small
 * Materials: grass, asphalt, and concrete
 * Can be upgraded between types
 * Medium
 * Materials: asphalt and concrete
 * Can be upgraded between asphalt and concrete
 * Unlocked by researching Medium Aircraft Permit R&D
 * Large
 * Materials: asphalt and concrete
 * Can be upgraded between asphalt and concrete
 * Unlocked by researching Large Aircraft Permit R&D

Each aircraft type requires the same size runway or larger to operate on. At the beginning of the game it may be built in either the grass or asphalt variant. Runways may be upgraded to concrete after completing the Structural Engineering R&D Project.

Takeoffs and Landings
Aircraft that land on the runway will proceed onto to the taxiway and into an available stand, following taxiway nodes. In order for aircraft to depart, a runway entrance is required, which is found in the aircraft infrastructure panel next to the runway icon. When departing, aircraft will wait at this entrance until the runway is clear for them to enter.

The direction in which aircraft takeoff and land is determined by which way the runway is placed. This means that once placed, the direction of the runway will and cannot be changed unless you demolish the runway and rebuild it in the right direction.

The Runway Panel
[[File:Runway Panel.png|thumb Clicking on a runway opens the runway panel, which shows various information about the selected runway. The left side of the panel shows the runway information. It shows it’s open/close status, operational costs per day, length, and flights in pattern. The right side of the panel shows toggles to change its operations mode (departures, arrivals, or both), allowed aircraft types (small aircraft, medium aircraft, large aircraft, general aviation and commercial flights), and if the aircraft use the same or type specific positions. The top right of the panel has an input field for the runway’s name, open/close option, upgrades, repair, and demolish.
 * Runway panel in Alpha 32]]

Upgrades
Currently, a runway must be demolished to upgrade to a larger size. The following upgrades are currently available as of Alpha 34:

Runway Entry/Exit
Runway entry and exits are attached to the the runway and are required at each end of the runway. They are required for aircraft to enter and exit the runway. They come in grass, asphalt, and concrete types, with the only asphalt and concrete having angled variants. For medium and large runways, it is recommended to place these at entry points along the runway for smaller aircraft to increase efficiency, as they don't use up as much runway.

Repairs
When an aircraft utilizes the runway through either landing or taking off, the runway is exposed to wear and tear. This lowers the runways operational condition and causes it to deteriorate over time to the point at which it will have to be repaired. Repairing a runway is done by opening the runway panel and clicking on the "Repair" button. Alternatively, a COO can be hired, which lets you activate proactive maintenance. This will meen that your runways will be repaired automatically.

Operational Costs
The cost to operate a runway decreases with each material upgrade, but increases with the size of the runway. Runways with a higher quality material have a better durability.

History
Before Alpha 33 small runways were constructed by default with a grass foundation but could later be upgraded to asphalt or concrete. While small-sized aircraft can land on a grass runway foundation, medium sized aircraft required an asphalt runway foundation. As of Alpha 33, runways cannot be extended. Instead, 3 differently sized runways are available: Small, Medium, and Large, which allow airplanes of corresponding size to land at them. Save files from previous versions had their runways converted to the new format based on their length.

Upgrades
Before Alpha 33 a runway could be extended or upgraded to a different material in the upgrade screen.


 * Extending the runway length in either direction.
 * $10,000 on grass runway.
 * $20,000 on asphalt runway.
 * Upgrading grass runway to asphalt or concrete for a base price of $60,000. If length is extended first, it increases the price by $4,000 for each extension.

Operational Costs
A grass runway has a base cost of $750 per day. Each extension increases it by $50 per day. An asphalt & concrete runways have a base cost of $1500 per day. Each extension increases it by $100 per hour. The following tables summarize the operation cost at each extension level. Hourly cost rounded by the nearest $.