Today no flight can land or take-off from the Chennai Airport between 1 pm and 7 pm, the runway at the airport will be shut down for six hours for undertaking maintenance work, airport officials said yesterday.

“The airport runway will be closed for six hours, as we plan to undertake the rubber removal work in the middle of the airstrip,” said airport director H.S. Suresh.

The work would be carried out on the central portion of the runway to enhance the ‘friction value’.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been doing milling work at the runway without disturbing the schedule of the airlines, but now it has decided to close the runway completely for six hours on Saturday to finish the rubber removal work at a stretch at the centre of the airstrip.

So better check the Flight Schedule Times with the airlines for today if you are flying into or from Chennai.

Because of this maintenance work, UPA Presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee will land at the Tambaram Airforce Station on the city outskirts on his visit for launching his campaign, officials said.