26 Years Ago, the Tunnel of Salvation Was Dug Under the Airport Runway

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Sarajevo Tunnel or Tunnel of Salvation was the only communication link between besieged Sarajevo and the rest of the country and the world. One of the most visited tourist destinations in Sarajevo was dug on this day, July 29, 1993. 

The tunnel was built under the airport runway and connected two settlements, Dobrinja and Butmir. It was about 720 meters long and about 1.5 meters high, while in some parts it was up to 1.8 meters high. The fact that the tunnel was to be dug from two sides required careful determination of the tunnel's direction. Work on digging the access trench began on January 28, 1993. Unfavorable weather conditions, lack of tools and people, shelling, and similar problems that accompanied the work did not inspire optimism in people.

The first meters of the tunnel were dug on February 1, 1993. The organization of the work itself was extremely difficult because there was no telephone connection, so the only means of communication was running across the runway. Digging the tunnel meant life for the city of Sarajevo, so this project had to continue despite all the problems people encountered in its implementation.

For the construction of the tunnel, iron collected in Sarajevo factories was used, and wood was hard to find, so the vertical walls of the tunnel were mostly lined with metal sheets. On the Butmir side, the situation was reversed. Iron structures were harder to find, so most of the tunnel on that side was made of wood. A total of 2,800 m3 of earth was excavated, about 170 m3 of timber was installed, and 45 tons of metal. During 1994, small rails were laid through the tunnel on which small carts ran.

Before the construction of this tunnel, more than 800 people lost their lives in the area of the airport complex. This was a consequence of running across the airport runway, due to the need for basic food supplies, which could be obtained in the free parts of Butmir and Hrasnica. A Serbian paramilitary unit located in the immediate vicinity of the airport mercilessly shot at any civilian who, out of necessity, tried to cross to the other side of the airport.

In official talks between the ARBiH and the UN, the tunnel was referred to as the "Tunnel That Does Not Exist." The tunnel was Sarajevo's most closely guarded secret because, through the tunnel, food, weapons, and other necessary supplies arrived in Sarajevo during the siege of the city.