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Runway safety is concerned with reducing harm that could occur on an aircraft runway. Safety means avoiding incorrect presence (incursion) of aircraft, inappropriate exits (excursion) and use of the wrong runway due to confusion. The runway condition is a runway's current status due to meteorological conditions and air safety. [1]
Several terms fall under the flight safety topic of runway safety, including incursion, excursion, and confusion. [2]
Runway incursion involves an aircraft, and a second aircraft, vehicle, or person. It is defined by ICAO and the U.S. FAA as "Any occurrence at an aerodrome involving the incorrect presence of an aircraft, vehicle or person on the protected area of a surface designated for the landing and take off of aircraft." [3] [4]
Runway excursion is an incident involving only a single aircraft, where it makes an inappropriate exit from the runway. This can happen because of pilot error, poor weather, or a fault with the aircraft. [5] A runway overrun is a type of excursion where the aircraft is unable to stop before the end of the runway.
Runway excursion is the most frequent type of landing accident, slightly ahead of runway incursion. [6] For runway accidents recorded between 1995 and 2007, 96% were of the 'excursion' type. [6]
Runway confusion is when a single aircraft uses the wrong runway, or a taxiway, for takeoff or landing. [7] Runway confusions are considered a subset of runway incursions. Three major factors that increase the risk of runway confusion include airport complexity, close proximity of runway thresholds, and joint use of a runway as a taxiway. [8] Examples of runway confusion incidents include Singapore Airlines Flight 006, Comair Flight 5191 and Air Canada Flight 759.
The U.S. FAA publishes an annual report on runway safety issues, available from the FAA website. [4] [9] [10] New systems designed to improve runway safety, such as Airport Movement Area Safety System (AMASS) and Runway Awareness and Advisory System (RAAS), are discussed in the report. AMASS narrowly prevented a serious collision in the 2007 San Francisco International Airport runway incursion.
In the 1990s, the U.S. FAA conducted a study about a civilian version of 3D military thrust vectoring to prevent jetliner catastrophes [11]
Some instruments for runway safety include ILS, LLWAS, Microwave landing system, Transponder landing system, as well as Runway Awareness and Advisory System.
The "runway condition" is a runway's current status in relation to current meteorological conditions and air safety.
According to the JAR definition, a runway with water patches or that is flooded is considered to be contaminated.
Takeoff and Landing Performance Assessment (TALPA) was introduced in 2016, whereby airport operators report Runway Condition Codes (RWYCC) for take-off and landing.
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a human-made surface or a natural surface. Runways, taxiways and ramps, are sometimes referred to as "tarmac", though very few runways are built using tarmac. Takeoff and landing areas defined on the surface of water for seaplanes are generally referred to as waterways. Runway lengths are now commonly given in meters worldwide, except in North America where feet are commonly used.
Akron–Canton Airport is a commercial airport in the city of Green, in southern Summit County, Ohio. The airport is located about 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Akron and 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Canton. It is jointly operated by Summit County and Stark County. The airport is a "reliever" airport for Northeast Ohio and markets itself as "A better way to go", emphasizing the ease of travel in comparison to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Just under 90% of its traffic is general aviation. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2019–2023, in which it is categorized as a small-hub primary commercial service facility.
On the evening of February 1, 1991, USAir Flight 1493, a Boeing 737-300, collided with SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569, a Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner turboprop aircraft, upon landing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Though air traffic was not heavy at LAX, as Flight 1493 was on final approach, the local controller was distracted by a series of abnormalities, including a misplaced flight progress strip and an aircraft that had inadvertently switched off the tower frequency. The SkyWest flight was told to taxi into takeoff position, while the USAir flight was landing on the same runway.
Cuyahoga County Airport, also known as Robert D. Shea Field, is a public use airport in northeastern Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. Owned and operated by Cuyahoga County since 1946, it also serves Lake County and Geauga County. The airport is located 10 nautical miles east of downtown Cleveland and sits on the border of three cities: Highland Heights, Richmond Heights and Willoughby Hills. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation reliever airport for Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.
Edward G. Pitka Sr. Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located in Galena, a city in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the U.S. state of Alaska.
Runway Status Lights (RWSL) are a visual alerting system installed in some airport taxiways and runways for the purpose of collision-avoidance. When illuminated, red high-intensity LEDs indicate the presence of another vehicle either departing, occupying, or landing on an active runway. RWSL systems are fully-automated and intended to alert aircrews and ground vehicle operators of a potential runway incursion hazard. They operate as an additional layer of safety, independent of human-issued air traffic control clearances.
Branch County Memorial Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) west of the central business district of Coldwater, a city in Branch County, Michigan, United States. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021, in which it is categorized as a local general aviation facility.
Frankfort Dow Memorial Field is a public use airport located two nautical miles (3.7 km) southeast of the central business district of Frankfort, a city in Benzie County, Michigan, United States. It is owned by the Frankfort City-County Airport Authority. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021, in which it is categorized as a general aviation facility.
A runway excursion is a runway safety incident in which an aircraft makes an inappropriate exit from the runway. Runway excursions include runway overruns, which occur when an aircraft is unable to stop before it reaches the end of the runway. Runway excursions can happen because of pilot error, poor weather, or a fault with the aircraft.
A runway incursion is an aviation incident involving improper positioning of vehicles or people on any airport runway or its protected area. When an incursion involves an active runway being used by arriving or departing aircraft, the potential for a collision hazard or Instrument Landing System (ILS) interference can exist. At present, various runway safety technologies and processes are commonly employed to reduce the risk and potential consequences of such an event.
Lawrence County Airpark is a public use airport located two nautical miles (3.7 km) west of the central business district of Chesapeake, a village in Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. It is publicly owned by Lawrence County Board of Commissioners. The airport lies across the Ohio River from Huntington, West Virginia.
Waukegan National Airport is a public airport in Waukegan, in Lake County, Illinois. The airport is 40 miles (64 km) north of Chicago. It was originally Waukegan Memorial Airport. It has been operated by the Waukegan Port District since 1956 and is the second busiest airport in Illinois for international arrivals. In January 2014 under a FAA reclassification of many small airports, the airport was renamed Waukegan National Airport
Mesquite Metro Airport is a public use airport in Dallas County, Texas, 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) east of the central business district of Mesquite. The airport is west of the border of Dallas County and Kaufman County.
Northwest Regional Airport is a privately owned, public use airport 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) northwest of Roanoke, in Denton County, Texas, United States.
The 1990 Wayne County Airport runway collision involved the collision of two Northwest Airlines jetliners at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport on December 3, 1990. Flight 1482, a scheduled Douglas DC-9-14 operating from Detroit to Pittsburgh International Airport, taxied by mistake onto an active runway in dense fog and was hit by a departing Boeing 727 operating as Flight 299 to Memphis International Airport. One member of the crew and seven passengers of the DC-9 were killed.
Harrison County Airport is a public use airport located two nautical miles (4 km) south of the central business district of Cadiz, a village in Harrison County, Ohio, United States. It is owned by the Harrison County Airport Authority. This airport was included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility.
On July 7, 2017, an Airbus A320-211 operating as Air Canada Flight 759 was nearly involved in an accident at San Francisco International Airport in San Mateo County, California, United States. The flight, which originated at Toronto Pearson International Airport, had been cleared by air traffic control to land on runway 28R and was on final approach to land on that runway; however, instead of lining up with the runway, the aircraft had lined up with the parallel taxiway, on which four fully loaded and fueled passenger airplanes were stopped awaiting takeoff clearance. The flight crew initiated a go-around prior to landing, after which it landed without further incident. The aircraft on the taxiway departed for their intended destinations without further incident. The subsequent investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the Air Canada airplane descended to 59 feet (18 m) above the ground before it began its climb, and that it missed colliding with one of the aircraft on the taxiway by 14 feet (4.3 m).
Tower Air Flight 41 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York City, to Miami International Airport (MIA) in Florida. On December 20, 1995, the Boeing 747-100 operating the flight veered off the runway during takeoff from JFK. All 468 people on board survived, but 25 people were injured. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair and written off, making the accident the 25th hull loss of a Boeing 747. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the captain had failed to reject the takeoff in a timely manner.
Overseas National Airways (ONA) Flight 032 was a non-scheduled positioning flight operated by Overseas National Airways with a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30CF. On November 12, 1975, the flight crew initiated a rejected takeoff after accelerating through a large flock of gulls at John F. Kennedy International Airport, resulting in a runway excursion. Of the 139 aircraft occupants, all survived, while the aircraft was destroyed by an intense post-crash fire. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the probable cause of the accident was bird ingestion into the right-hand engine, causing an uncontained engine failure that ruptured several landing gear tires and disabled the engine's hydraulic system, in turn partially disabling the spoilers and the landing gear brakes. Contributing to the accident was the resultant failure of the affected engine's thrust reverser and the wet runway. The accident aircraft is claimed to be the largest commercial airliner ever destroyed due to a bird strike.
The Sandusky City Airport is a public-use airport located three miles north of the city of Sandusky, Michigan. The airport is publicly owned by the city.