Airport preps for worst for Super Bowl week

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - The crush of Super Bowl crowds will land at the Indianapolis International Airport beginning the Monday before the big game. Bad weather, especially snow and ice, could cause big problems. But the airport said it's ready. Its snow crew is set to go.

The crew that routinely keeps Indianapolis International Airport's 30 miles of runways and taxiways - along with its 40 miles of perimeter roads - open for business is a force with which to be reckoned. But Super Bowl week, said Mike Medvescek, chief operating officer at the airport, will bring a burden never experienced here before.

"We're looking for 400 to 600 additional aircraft," he said.

Slush, like the kind that hit the airport with Thursday’s weather, offers the biggest potential danger.

"Anything more than a quarter of an inch of slushy snow is hazardous to aircraft, because it builds up on the landing wheels, it builds up on the flaps of the aircraft," Medvescek said.

Plows don't work on slush, because they leave residue behind. Salt can't be used on runways because it's corrosive to aircraft. Instead, 600 horsepower brooms get the job done. Super Bowl week, the airport is bringing in six extra power brooms and one more that is twice the size of the ones they usually use.

"It's about 40 feet long, blade on it's 24 foot, and has a 20-foot plow on it and a blower," Medvescek said.

With 400 to 600 extra aircraft expected, de-icing is a top priority. Extra crews and trucks are being brought in. And running out of deicing fluid is not an option, Medvescek said.

"Outside the gate, we plan on bringing tanker trucks in with deicer fluid that will be sitting out there staged, ready to come in if these tanks start to get low," he said.

The plan at the airport includes adding extra equipment and staff, but the goal is simple and clear cut, Medvescek said: to keep the airport open.