# Egal Airport Runway: A 2013 Assessment and Its Limits

> A Somaliland Sun op-ed from September 2013 flagged runway issues at Egal Airport. What the report does not establish about later repairs or current status.

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 1 October 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Infrastructure and Services
- Tags: construction-risk, drainage
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/egal-airport-runway-2013-assessment-limits

## Key points

- On 15 September 2013, Somaliland Sun published an op-ed by Captain Mohamed Ahmed Omar on Egal Airport's runway.
- Omar claimed the runway was 2.446 km, potholed, and too short for fully loaded jets, and alleged flaws in renovation planning.
- The report does not establish any subsequent repairs, extension, or current runway status.

On 15 September 2013, Somaliland Sun reported an op-ed by Captain Mohamed Ahmed Omar, a diaspora pilot and certified airline transport pilot and instructor, titled "Hargeisa Airport And Its Runway Who To Blame This Fiasco". The piece offered the author's assessment of the runway at Egal Airport in Hargeisa and criticized the Somaliland government and Civil Aviation Authority over planning for the runway renovation.

Omar claimed the runway was "little short for a jet aircraft loaded with full passenger & lot of fuel", with a current available length of 2.446 km that was pot-holed and patched. Elsewhere in the piece he cited a runway length of 2.4 km (8,005 feet). These two figures are inconsistent. He also stated Hargeisa airport is 4,420 feet above sea level, and argued the runway should be extended to 3.1 or 3.2 km (approximately 10,560 feet) to allow safe operations.

The author attributed responsibility for airport safety to the airport operator, which he identified as the government of Somaliland. He claimed the government failed to provide a fence or barrier around the airport, and that the renovation planning did not account for high temperature, high elevation, aircraft weight, and runway condition. He further alleged the Civil Aviation Authority asked airlines to carry less fuel and cargo, which he called "dangerous, costly & not profitable". Omar also wrote that the government's claim that the contractor was an international Chinese company was "far from the truth and it is dishonest".

The piece included a comparison table of regional airports, with figures attributed to the author. It listed Berbera runway at 13,583 feet (4.14 km), Djibouti at 10,335 feet (3.1 km), Addis Ababa at 12,467 feet (3.8 km), Mogadishu at 10,335 feet (3.1 km), and Kismayo at 12,139 feet (3.7 km). The same table gave Hargeisa's runway length as 8,005 feet (2.4 km), width 148 feet (45 m), and elevation 4,420 feet.

> **Note:** The 2013 op-ed reports one pilot's assessment at that time. It does not establish what has happened at Egal Airport since. No official record of subsequent repairs, extension, or current runway condition appears in the published article.

The Somaliland Sun piece does not establish any repairs or upgrades after 2013. It does not cite a contract award, contractor name, project cost, or inspection report. The government and Civil Aviation Authority issued no response in the article. Current runway length, width, condition, or operational restrictions are not documented in the source. The op-ed's recommendations have no confirmed implementation.

## Questions

### What specific technical issues with the Egal Airport runway were raised in 2013?

Captain Mohamed Ahmed Omar claimed the runway was only 2.446 km, pot-holed and patched, too short for fully loaded jets, and that renovation planning ignored temperature, elevation, aircraft weight, and runway condition.

### What caused the runway deterioration according to the 2013 op-ed?

The op-ed did not specify a cause of deterioration. Omar criticized the renovation planning for failing to account for high temperatures and elevation, but did not identify the original construction standard or the deterioration mechanism.

### What repair or upgrade was needed according to the author?

Omar argued the runway should be extended from 2.4 km to 3.1 or 3.2 km, about 10,560 feet, and that a fence or barrier was missing.

## Sources

- [Somaliland: The Egal Airport Runway and What is Wrong](https://somalilandsun.com/somaliland-the-egal-airport-runway-and-what-is-wrong/) — Somaliland Sun, 2013-09-15