Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management

Runway skid resistance is crucial for the safety of aircrafts. Despite being internationally regulated, investigation reports published by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the US National Transportation Safety Board indicate that 4.9–22% of runway excursion accidents are related to insuffi...

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Main Authors: Gadel Baimukhametov, Greg White
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/2/548
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author Gadel Baimukhametov
Greg White
author_facet Gadel Baimukhametov
Greg White
author_sort Gadel Baimukhametov
collection DOAJ
description Runway skid resistance is crucial for the safety of aircrafts. Despite being internationally regulated, investigation reports published by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the US National Transportation Safety Board indicate that 4.9–22% of runway excursion accidents are related to insufficient friction, or to friction overestimation. Consequently, based on this review of friction physics, aircraft accident reports, international runway surface regulation, and aircraft braking performance regulation, it was concluded that significant improvement in the management of runway surface characteristics can be achieved. Areas for potential improvement in the current systems for aircraft skid resistance include gaps in the operational reporting of prevailing runway contamination, as well as friction and surface texture measurement and interpretation protocols. Furthermore, aircraft braking performance regulations are not related to actual runway surface friction levels, resulting in reportedly good runways being found to provide inadequate aircraft skid resistance in certain conditions. Recommendations include improvements in the management of runway friction and texture measurement and analysis during pavement design, and through the service life of the pavement surfaces. Finally, the basis of an improved international runway surface engineering design and management system is outlined. Recommendations can reduce the risk of aircraft skidding accidents in the future.
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spelling doaj-art-1ac36e8db9704af3b3bfb8a443643c8b2025-01-24T13:19:47ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-01-0115254810.3390/app15020548Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and ManagementGadel Baimukhametov0Greg White1School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD 4556, AustraliaSchool of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD 4556, AustraliaRunway skid resistance is crucial for the safety of aircrafts. Despite being internationally regulated, investigation reports published by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the US National Transportation Safety Board indicate that 4.9–22% of runway excursion accidents are related to insufficient friction, or to friction overestimation. Consequently, based on this review of friction physics, aircraft accident reports, international runway surface regulation, and aircraft braking performance regulation, it was concluded that significant improvement in the management of runway surface characteristics can be achieved. Areas for potential improvement in the current systems for aircraft skid resistance include gaps in the operational reporting of prevailing runway contamination, as well as friction and surface texture measurement and interpretation protocols. Furthermore, aircraft braking performance regulations are not related to actual runway surface friction levels, resulting in reportedly good runways being found to provide inadequate aircraft skid resistance in certain conditions. Recommendations include improvements in the management of runway friction and texture measurement and analysis during pavement design, and through the service life of the pavement surfaces. Finally, the basis of an improved international runway surface engineering design and management system is outlined. Recommendations can reduce the risk of aircraft skidding accidents in the future.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/2/548frictionskid resistancerunway excursiontexturemicrotexturemacrotexture
spellingShingle Gadel Baimukhametov
Greg White
Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
Applied Sciences
friction
skid resistance
runway excursion
texture
microtexture
macrotexture
title Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
title_full Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
title_fullStr Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
title_full_unstemmed Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
title_short Review and Improvement of Runway Friction and Aircraft Skid Resistance Regulation, Assessment and Management
title_sort review and improvement of runway friction and aircraft skid resistance regulation assessment and management
topic friction
skid resistance
runway excursion
texture
microtexture
macrotexture
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/2/548
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