Two opposing football players have teamed up to switch on Liverpool John Lennon airport’s new state-of-the-art runway lights.

The unlikely Everton – Liverpool paring of Leighton Baines and Ryan Babel made the switch over using the plunger usually reserved for Liverpool’s Christmas lights.

The new lighting for the runway and taxiway took six months to complete and cost over £2m. As a result of this project, aircraft are able to taxi, take-off and land in extremely low levels of visibility which previously would have resulted in cancelled flights.

Andy Gower, Airport Director for JLA, commented: “We thought it was appropriate to ask both Liverpool and Everton Football Clubs to help with this switch on. With Everton joining Liverpool in Europe this season, both teams and their supporters are regular users of the Airport. As Winter draws nearer and the weather can get poorer, this upgrade to the runway lighting system will help ensure that even fewer flights will be affected by any bad weather.”

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