The work started after September 10.
According to the Belarusian Hajun monitoring group, the runway is currently being repaired at Machulishchy airfield. This is evidenced by the analysis of satellite images and aviation activity.
On September 1, due to the beginning of the CSTO drills Combat Brotherhood-2023, some of the aircraft of the 50th Combined Air Base deployed in Machulishchy were redeployed to Baranavichy airfield: Il-76, An-26 and Tu-134 of the Belarusian Air Force. After the end of the drills, the aircraft remained in Baranavichy and are still there. In turn, helicopters of the 50th Combined Air Base were not redeployed anywhere due to runway repairs.
The construction work on the runway is clearly visible on the satellite images at our disposal. We may assume that the work started after September 10.
We recall that back in March 2023, we reported about the purchase of 584 PAG-18 airfield slabs for Machulishchy airfield. They should be enough to replace about 110 meters of the runway (the entire length of Machulishchy runway is 3000 meters). The contract for the supply of PAG-18 slabs was signed on May 31 with the Managing Company of the Belarusian Cement Company holding.
The purchase of PAG-18 airfield slabs is not unusual. For example, in 2022, the Command of the Air Force and Air Defense Forces of Belarus purchased 564 PAG-18 slabs for runway repairs at Machulishchy airfield, and in 2021 – 540 slabs.
Earlier the runway was repaired at Baranavichy airfield, and there was also a temporary redeployment of aircraft to other airfields.
The repair work can be seen in the video published on September 25 by the Ministry of Defense of Belarus. You can see construction equipment and a truck crane in the background.
