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Runway Incursions
Andrew T. Von Dran
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University – Worldwide
SFTY 409: Aviation Safety
Jim Durwin
March 5, 2023
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Airports have an incredible number of moving pieces and players involved in many
different tasks at all times of the day. With all these moving parts comes inherent risk that could
have devastating repercussions if anyone is not on the same page as the rest of the airport
environment. The FAA defines a runway incursion 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 takeoff of aircraft” (faa.gov, 2023). The FAA and airport
staff take incursions very seriously. Some of aviation’s most deadly accidents have occurred
from runway incursions whether it was miscommunication, airport diagram confusion, or just a
lack of paying attention. The question becomes what can be done to prevent runway incursions?
The textbook clearly expresses “runway incursions result from human error” (Cusick, S.,
Cortes, A., & Rodrigues, C., 2017), which narrows down the scope of how to go about limiting
incursions. The FAA clearly defines the signage that will be utilized at airports and uses specific
colors, letters, and numbers for clarity. Designing airports with safety in mind is important in the
very early stages. Care must be taken to limit the amount of crossing runways and taxiways as
much as possible. Placing the tower where runways and taxiways are easily visible in order for
visual verification helps with early detection that an incursion may happen and can be avoided
before it begins. Allowing ample space for aircraft to maneuver and simplified taxiways leads to
less pilot workload and allows the cockpit to focus on communication and crew coordination.
Beyond the design of the airport, proper pilot familiarity with the airport diagram, accurate and
concise communication, and crew coordination in the cockpit are the vital points that will make
or break a safe environment. In order to ensure these are held to the highest standard, proper
periodic training and establishing a culture within each organization of demanding attention to
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detail and clear communication will be the most significant focus points to reduce these runway
incursions from happening (Cusick, S., Cortes, A., & Rodrigues, C., 2017).
Although runway incursions are caused by human error, airports and cockpits now have
technology available to them to help ensure incursions are not going to happen. The top busiest
airports have technology such as the airport movement area safety system (AMASS) and the
airport surface detection equipment, model x (ASDE-X) which alert controllers of a potential
incursion or collision. There is also the use of runway status lights (RWSL) or final approach
runway occupancy signal (FAROS) to use automatic lights to alert crews to the status of the
runway or short final. Finally, electronic flight bags (EFB) inside the cockpit now provide
accurate depiction on a digital airport diagram to allow the crew to know precisely where they
are on the airfield. Combining the human techniques with the use of electronic developments, we
will see runway incursions be limited to far less than we have become accustomed to seeing.
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References
Cusick, S., Cortes, A., & Rodrigues, C. (2017). Commercial aviation safety. 6th ed. McGraw
Hill Education.
FAA. (2023). Runway Incursions.
https://www.faa.gov/airports/runway_safety/resources/runway_incursions
