Runway safety scheme launched by Eurocontrol

Date: 12/09/02

By Karen Carstens

EUROCONTROL, the European organisation for air navigation safety, has launched a scheme to coordinate runway safety at airports across Europe.

As part of the initiative, an international committee was set up to monitor the process following a workshop in Brussels. 'Runway safety is a vital component of aviation safety as a whole: with the expected growth of air traffic, sheer numbers of incidents are bound to rise, unless held in check by pragmatic, sensible solutions,' said Victor M. Aguado, director general of the organisation. 'Eurocontrol has an important role to play in bringing these about.'

Eurocontrol jointly organised the two-day workshop (9-10 September) with the Group of Aerodrome Safety Regulators (GASR), the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

According to the 31-member supervisory body, shockingly little data exists on runway safety in Europe and the quality of what information there is varies, making it impossible to reliably predict a safety trend. The upshot: a pressing need for the entire aviation community to share safety-related information and introduce a harmonised and consistent approach to data collection and analysis.

The new steering committee will include representatives of the major European regulatory bodies, the JAA and GASR, air navigation service providers, airlines and airports. It will monitor the implementation of several key remedial projects and recommend priorities for short-term improvements, such as a review of procedures for pilots, by January 2003. The committee also aims to assess the long-term improvements required to ensure cooperation through improved data collection and targeted awareness campaigns.

In July 2001, Eurocontrol set up an international task force to improve runway safety in conjunction with the JAA, GASR, ICAO and the United States' Federal Aviation Administration. It carried out a detailed survey of incidents at airports.

The survey's initial findings were presented and discussed at the workshop, which was also attended by FAA and NavCanada representatives.

Eurocontrol, the European organisation for air navigation safety, has launched a scheme to co-ordinate runway safety at airports across Europe.