Airport Business - 38

TECHNOLOGY
AUTHOR Mark DeVries

Power of Data
TO KEEP Runways Clear DURING
Winter Weather
USE THE

Airport decision makers need accurate
and reliable weather information
to prioritize safety and efficiency.
IN THE ongoing battle between airport operations
and winter weather, airports always want to err on
the side of caution.
Regardless of the size of the airport,
safety is the No. 1 concern, and ice,
snow and frost can all impact both the
safety and the efficiency of essential
airport operations. When it comes to
snow removal, the biggest priority is
keeping ice from forming because once
ice forms on the runway surface, it takes
a significant amount of work to return to
dry pavement. In much the same manner
that departments of transportation do for
our road infrastructure, airports have to
prepare for winter weather events with
well-choreographed plans to deal with
whatever might happen.
Whether determining the equipment
and materials necessary for adequate
snow and ice removal, closing runways

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
MARK DeVRIES

Mark DeVries is a solutions manager in
transportation with Vaisala. With 30 years
of expertise in winter road maintenance,
DeVries also works with airports to ensure
runway and taxiway safety during snow
events.

or cancelling f lights altogether, airport
decision-makers need accurate and
reliable weather information to prioritize
the safety and efficiency of all operations.
But how do airports get their weather
intel leading up to - and during - snow
removal?
As we move further into the digital
age, the aviation industry has been
investing significantly into technologies
aimed at tackling weather mitigation.
Recent reports reveal the global airport
snow and ice management equipment
market is currently valued at more than $2
billion and is estimated to grow by nearly
3 percent from 2018-2026. Beyond snow
blowers, plows, brooms, sprayer trucks
and de-icing chemicals, advanced airport
weather technologies are now delivering
the data that helps keep airport runways,
taxiways and ramps safe during the winter
snow and ice.

Need for Stationary
Runway Weather System
Technology
The Federal Aviation Administration
heavily regulates the snow removal

38 \ AIRPORTBUSINESS / APRIL 2020

process. Its 60-plus-page Airport Winter
Safety and Operations advisory circular
advises airport operators on how to
develop a snow and ice control plan
and tells them how to conduct runway
friction surveys to determine if it's safe
for a plane to land or take off.
Further, the FAA requires every
airport that receives more than six inches
of snow per year to create a snow and ice
control plan and a committee to create
guidelines for winter operations. Plus, the
administration considers a runway to be
contaminated when standing water, snow,
ice or slush are present because those
conditions can lead to hydroplaning,
ultimately making it difficult for a plane
to take off or land safely.
Because winter weather impacts
runways and taxiways in a different
manner than it impacts the atmosphere,
measuring specific runway conditions is
critical to airport safety. As such, accurate,
real-time weather monitoring of the
runways and taxiways is one of the most
cost-effective methods decision-makers
utilize to ensure safe, continuous airport
operations.
Enter runway and weather sensors.
From embedded in-pavement sensors
and subsurface temperature probes to
atmospheric sensors, runway weather
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