At 3:30am on Friday, May 8, 2020, 400 runners will take to the runway at Liverpool John Lennon Airport for a charity event.
The 5km (3 mile) run is sponsored by Liverpool Airport Holidays and is being organized by employees at the airport to help raise donations for the Alder Hey Children’s Charity, which supports the local Alder Hey Hospital.
At 2km (1.2 mile) in length, Liverpool’s runway will be the longest in the UK to be used for a charity run. To complete the 5km course, participants will run the length of the runway and along the taxiways that run parallel. The airport is being granted special dispensation from regulatory authorities, and staff will be on hand to return the areas involved back to operational use ahead of the first passenger departures at 6:00am that morning.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport has raised more than £173,000 (US$220,000) for Alder Hey since 2016 and hopes that the run will help it reach its £200,000 (US$254,000) target.