A ‘Family Runway Walk’ event was held for the first time, on November 1, on the normally out-of-bounds runway of Asahikawa Airport in northern Hokkaido. The 43 people from 20 families who took part were able to enjoy, from close range, the aeronautical lights shining like illuminations, as well as the atmosphere of the expansive runway where the aircraft take-off and land.
　
The event – organized by Hokkaido Airports (HAP, Chitose), which runs the 7 airports in Hokkaido that have been privatized – is part of the ‘7 Airports Fes. 2020’ event held at each airport in Hokkaido to promote airport privatization. The 20 families that took part were drawn from a total of 50 applicants from Hokkaido and beyond.
　
At just after 6 a.m., amid temperatures of 3.6 degrees, participants took commemorative photos while strolling along and a 100-meter stretch of the 2,500-m-long, 60-m-wide runway. Cheers could be heard amid the strong, cold winds that blew, as the aeronautical lights were lit up specially for the event.