AoC number
Primary domain
Secondary domain
Description
At large airports, current controller tools provide surface displays and can alert controllers when aircraft taxi into areas where a runway incursion could result. Additional ground- based capabilities will be developed to improve runway safety that include expansion of runway surveillance technology (i.e., ASDe-X) to additional airports (likely not to additional airports – see LCGS discussion below), deployment of low-cost surveillance for medium-sized airports, improved runway markings, and initial controller taxi conformance monitoring capabilities. OI 103207 Improved Runway Safety Situational Awareness for Controllers
Advanced Surface Movement Guidance and Control System is a system at airports having a surveillance infrastructure consisting of a Non-Cooperative Surveillance (e.g. SMR, Microwave Sensors, Optical Sensors etc.) and Cooperative Surveillance (e.g. Multilateration systems)
Low Cost Ground Surveillance is being developed as an alternative to more sophisticated systems. Plans include Certification of alternative low-cost ground surveillance systems to enhance airport safety by providing air traffic controllers with information regarding aircraft and vehicle movement on the ground
Runway safety operations are improved by providing pilots with improved awareness of their location on the airport surface as well as runway incursion alerting capabilities. To help minimize pilot disorientation on the airport surface, a surface moving map display with own-ship position will be available. Both ground-based (e.g., runway status lights) and cockpit-based runway incursion alerting capabilities will also be available to alert pilots when it’s unsafe to enter the runway environment. OI 103208 Improved Runway Safety Situational Awareness for Pilots
Data communication between aircraft and ANSP is used to exchange clearances, amendments, and requests. At specified airports, data communications is the principal means of communication between ANSP and equipped aircraft. “Terminal automation provides the ability to transmit automated terminal information, departure clearances and amendments, and taxi route instructions via data communications, including hold-short instructions. The taxi route instruction data communication function reduces requests for progressive taxi instructions. Benefits arising from this capability, in conjunction with other NAS investments, include enhanced airport throughput, controller efficiency, enhanced safety, as well as reduced fuel burn and emissions. OI 104207 Enhanced Surface Operations
Potential hazard
- The boundaries of the runway protection area must be as close as possible to the runway to avoid unnecessary alerts, but must be carefully determined to allow time for immediate action / reaction in order to prevent any mobile from entering the runway after having been detected as a potential hazard.
- When operations are conducted on two parallel or converging runways, the only incursion hazard happens if one aircraft enters the protection area of the other runway while this one is engaged.
- Although the only incursion hazard happens if one aircraft enters the protection area of the other runway while this one is engaged, unlike the previous case both runways share a common part and the controller has to be alerted if there is a risk that any two mobiles, one being an aircraft, are to be in this common part at the same time.
- The conflicts / infringements considered at Level 2 are related to the most hazardous ground circulation incidents or accidents. They could be defined as follows:
- Conflicts / infringements on runway caused by aircraft or vehicles;
- Restricted area incursions caused by aircraft (i.e. incursions on a closed taxiway or runway).
Corroborating sources and comments
14 NBAA Top Safety Focus Areas: http://www.nbaa.org/ops/safety/top-safety-focus-areas/index.php
Effective risk management requires operators to exercise increased vigilance while operating at unfamiliar, non-towered, or complex airport environments. The NBAA Airport Safety Working Group promotes use of tools to help manage threats on and around the airport environment to include wildlife, infrastructure challenges, and other inherent airport hazards.
Stopping Devices
An engineered materials arrestor system or engineered materials arresting system (EMAS) is a bed of engineered materials built at the end of a runway. Engineered materials are defined in FAA Advisory Circular No 150/5220-22A as “high energy absorbing materials of selected strength, which will reliably and predictably crush under the weight of an aircraft”. While the current technology involves lightweight, crushable concrete blocks, there is no regulatory requirement that this material be used for EMAS. The purpose of an EMAS is to stop an aircraft overrun with no human injury and minimal aircraft damage. The aircraft is slowed by the loss of energy required to crush the EMAS material. An EMAS is similar in concept to the runaway truck ramp made of gravel or sand. It is intended to stop aircraft that have overshot a runway when there is an insufficient free space for a standard runway safety area (RSA). Multiple patents have been issued on the construction and design on the materials and process.
The FAA began conducting research in the 1990s to determine how to improve safety at airports where the full RSA cannot be obtained. Working in concert with the University of Dayton, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Zodiac Arresting Systems, formerly known as ESCO (Engineered Arresting Systems Corp.) of Logan Township, NJ, a new technology emerged to safely arrest overrunning aircraft. The system uses crushable concrete placed at the end of a runway to stop an aircraft that overruns the runway. The tyres of the aircraft sink into the lightweight concrete and the aircraft is decelerated as it rolls through the material. This Engineered Material Arresting System (EMAS) Technology has been refined and enhanced, resulting in the latest generation of the product, EMASMAX, which has greater durability, ease of maintenance and longer product life. As of December 2013, EMASMAX systems have been installed on 81 runways at 50 airports worldwide, with the two most recent international installations taking place at Kjevik Airport in Kristiansand, Norway in the summer and fall of 2012. Previous international installations include two each at Sichuan Province, China (2006), Barajas-Madrid, Spain (2007), Kristiansand, Norway (2012) and one at Taipei City, Taiwan (2011) . But it is also important that the global aviation community follow the FAA’s lead in promoting the use of EMAS systems at airports around the world. There are a number of initiatives in place designed to achieve this. The “Global Aviation Safety Roadmap”, a joint effort document from ACI, Airbus, Boeing, CANSO, FSF, IATA and IFALPA submitted to ICAO, provides a strategic plan for aviation safety that lists technologies, including EMAS arrester beds, as a preventive measure to eliminate or reduce the damage associated with take-off and landing accidents. The recommendation underscores the fact that an EMAS bed should be installed at each runway end where the terrain configuration does not allow for a provision of a RESA (240m) as recommended by ICAO Annex 14.
This EMAS of the port of NY and NJ authority was designed for commercial jet aircraft, but proved its value for commuter planes on May 8, 1999 when a SAAB 340 commuter plane landed long and overran the runway at a high speed exceeding 70 knots. It was safely stopped by an EMAS, protecting the passengers and the crew. The aircraft was extracted within 4 hours by removing the used material and pulling the plane out backwards with a tow attached to each main gear. The runway was then immediately re-opened. Subsequent repairs to the arrestor bed took only 12 days to accomplish. On May 30, 2003, an air cargo MD-11 landed long and overran the runway. Once again, the aircraft was safely stopped by the EMAS, with no injuries and no major damage to the aircraft. Within a few hours, the aircraft was extracted allowing the runway to go back into operation. On the afternoon of January 24, 2005, the EMAS was put to its biggest challenge yet when a 600,000-pound Boeing 747 landed long and overran into the EMAS. As predicted, the aircraft was safely stopped by the EMAS with no injuries to the crew and damage to the aircraft was limited to replacing nine tires. The aircraft went back into service within days. Zodiac Arresting Systems’ EMAS has also recorded aircraft saves in Greenville, SC (July 2006: Falcon 900 corporate jet), Charleston, WV (January 2010: Bombardier CRJ-200), Teterboro, NJ (October 2010: Gulfstream G-IV), Key West, FL (November 2011: Cessna Citation 550) and most recently, West Palm Beach FL (October 2013: Cessna Citation 680).
AEROMACS: AeroMACS is being developed exclusively for communication taking place between traffic towers and aircraft when they are on the ground. The technology is digitally based, unlike the analog radar and communications systems currently used. The difference between digital and analog is that digital produces “error-free” communication and allows for signal security through encryption. It also allows digital data to be used for countless applications to maximize traffic safety and efficiency, Kamali said. The first wave of applications involve employing a system of sensors on airport surfaces to continuously map the location of all aircraft and vehicles. Right now, traffic control towers mostly use sight to determine the location of aircraft on runways and taxiways. Eventually, AeroMACS could allow airports to use automation, Kerczewski said. The technology is also wireless, which is a cheaper alternative to installing fiber-optic wire beneath airport surfaces.
FAA AVS Workplan for NextGen 2012, P. 66
http://www.faa.gov/nextgen/media/avs_nextgen_workplan_2012.pdf
Operational Concept and Requirements for A- SMGCS (Surface Movement Guidance & Control System) Implementation Level 2, Eurocontrol, http://www.eurocontrol.int/sites/default/files/content/documents/nm/airports/a-smgcs-operational-concept-and-requirements-level2-v2-1-20100630.pdf
Advanced Surface Movement Guidance and Control System
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Surface_Movement_Guidance_and_Control_System
Low Cost Ground Surveillance
http://www.volpe.dot.gov/coi/aso/work/ground-surveillance.html
ASDE-x
http://www.saabsensis.com/products/airport-surface-detection-equipment-model-x-asde-x/
Corroborating sources and comments
14 NBAA Top Safety Focus Areas: http://www.nbaa.org/ops/safety/top-safety-focus-areas/index.php
Effective risk management requires operators to exercise increased vigilance while operating at unfamiliar, non-towered, or complex airport environments. The NBAA Airport Safety Working Group promotes use of tools to help manage threats on and around the airport environment to include wildlife, infrastructure challenges, and other inherent airport hazards.
Stopping Devices
An engineered materials arrestor system or engineered materials arresting system (EMAS) is a bed of engineered materials built at the end of a runway. Engineered materials are defined in FAA Advisory Circular No 150/5220-22A as “high energy absorbing materials of selected strength, which will reliably and predictably crush under the weight of an aircraft”. While the current technology involves lightweight, crushable concrete blocks, there is no regulatory requirement that this material be used for EMAS. The purpose of an EMAS is to stop an aircraft overrun with no human injury and minimal aircraft damage. The aircraft is slowed by the loss of energy required to crush the EMAS material. An EMAS is similar in concept to the runaway truck ramp made of gravel or sand. It is intended to stop aircraft that have overshot a runway when there is an insufficient free space for a standard runway safety area (RSA). Multiple patents have been issued on the construction and design on the materials and process.
The FAA began conducting research in the 1990s to determine how to improve safety at airports where the full RSA cannot be obtained. Working in concert with the University of Dayton, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and Zodiac Arresting Systems, formerly known as ESCO (Engineered Arresting Systems Corp.) of Logan Township, NJ, a new technology emerged to safely arrest overrunning aircraft. The system uses crushable concrete placed at the end of a runway to stop an aircraft that overruns the runway. The tyres of the aircraft sink into the lightweight concrete and the aircraft is decelerated as it rolls through the material. This Engineered Material Arresting System (EMAS) Technology has been refined and enhanced, resulting in the latest generation of the product, EMASMAX, which has greater durability, ease of maintenance and longer product life. As of December 2013, EMASMAX systems have been installed on 81 runways at 50 airports worldwide, with the two most recent international installations taking place at Kjevik Airport in Kristiansand, Norway in the summer and fall of 2012. Previous international installations include two each at Sichuan Province, China (2006), Barajas-Madrid, Spain (2007), Kristiansand, Norway (2012) and one at Taipei City, Taiwan (2011) . But it is also important that the global aviation community follow the FAA’s lead in promoting the use of EMAS systems at airports around the world. There are a number of initiatives in place designed to achieve this. The “Global Aviation Safety Roadmap”, a joint effort document from ACI, Airbus, Boeing, CANSO, FSF, IATA and IFALPA submitted to ICAO, provides a strategic plan for aviation safety that lists technologies, including EMAS arrester beds, as a preventive measure to eliminate or reduce the damage associated with take-off and landing accidents. The recommendation underscores the fact that an EMAS bed should be installed at each runway end where the terrain configuration does not allow for a provision of a RESA (240m) as recommended by ICAO Annex 14.
This EMAS of the port of NY and NJ authority was designed for commercial jet aircraft, but proved its value for commuter planes on May 8, 1999 when a SAAB 340 commuter plane landed long and overran the runway at a high speed exceeding 70 knots. It was safely stopped by an EMAS, protecting the passengers and the crew. The aircraft was extracted within 4 hours by removing the used material and pulling the plane out backwards with a tow attached to each main gear. The runway was then immediately re-opened. Subsequent repairs to the arrestor bed took only 12 days to accomplish. On May 30, 2003, an air cargo MD-11 landed long and overran the runway. Once again, the aircraft was safely stopped by the EMAS, with no injuries and no major damage to the aircraft. Within a few hours, the aircraft was extracted allowing the runway to go back into operation. On the afternoon of January 24, 2005, the EMAS was put to its biggest challenge yet when a 600,000-pound Boeing 747 landed long and overran into the EMAS. As predicted, the aircraft was safely stopped by the EMAS with no injuries to the crew and damage to the aircraft was limited to replacing nine tires. The aircraft went back into service within days. Zodiac Arresting Systems’ EMAS has also recorded aircraft saves in Greenville, SC (July 2006: Falcon 900 corporate jet), Charleston, WV (January 2010: Bombardier CRJ-200), Teterboro, NJ (October 2010: Gulfstream G-IV), Key West, FL (November 2011: Cessna Citation 550) and most recently, West Palm Beach FL (October 2013: Cessna Citation 680).
AEROMACS: AeroMACS is being developed exclusively for communication taking place between traffic towers and aircraft when they are on the ground. The technology is digitally based, unlike the analog radar and communications systems currently used. The difference between digital and analog is that digital produces “error-free” communication and allows for signal security through encryption. It also allows digital data to be used for countless applications to maximize traffic safety and efficiency, Kamali said. The first wave of applications involve employing a system of sensors on airport surfaces to continuously map the location of all aircraft and vehicles. Right now, traffic control towers mostly use sight to determine the location of aircraft on runways and taxiways. Eventually, AeroMACS could allow airports to use automation, Kerczewski said. The technology is also wireless, which is a cheaper alternative to installing fiber-optic wire beneath airport surfaces.
FAA AVS Workplan for NextGen 2012, P. 66
http://www.faa.gov/nextgen/media/avs_nextgen_workplan_2012.pdf
Operational Concept and Requirements for A- SMGCS (Surface Movement Guidance & Control System) Implementation Level 2, Eurocontrol, http://www.eurocontrol.int/sites/default/files/content/documents/nm/airports/a-smgcs-operational-concept-and-requirements-level2-v2-1-20100630.pdf
Advanced Surface Movement Guidance and Control System
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Surface_Movement_Guidance_and_Control_System
Low Cost Ground Surveillance
http://www.volpe.dot.gov/coi/aso/work/ground-surveillance.html
ASDE-x
http://www.saabsensis.com/products/airport-surface-detection-equipment-model-x-asde-x/