Runway Incursions

There once was a time when piston singles were more prevalent at the Washington Dulles International Airport than they are today, and one evening I was in one of them, coming or going, on the ground control frequency. Another light airplane called for taxi clearance and, based on its position, was routed to a departure runway as far away as humanly possible from its parking spot. The pilot responded, Uh, ground, that looks kind of far; do you mind if we just fly over there?

Editorial Staff

Sunday, June 02, 2019 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Runway incursions are a frequent and serious safety concern, often resulting from pilot confusion or error, particularly at complex airports.
Pilots can prevent incursions by thoroughly understanding taxi routes, using airport diagrams, writing down clearances, reading back hold-short instructions, and requesting progressive instructions when unfamiliar.
Maintaining strict cockpit discipline is crucial; pilots should complete checklists and other tasks while stationary on the ramp or clear of active runways, not during taxiing.
Runway Status Lighting (RWSL) systems provide an independent safety enhancement, but pilots must still obtain and confirm ATC clearances and never cross illuminated red lights.

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Any time we place moving objects in close proximity to each other—like, say, on an airport’s runways and taxiways—they’re bound to conflict. When those objects are aircraft with people in them, landing and taking off, a collision can ruin your whole day. That’s the worst case, of course. But the fallout from forcing a 737 filled with taxpayers to go around can come in as a close second.

The FAA calls these events runway incursions (see below) and they happen more often than we might think. According to the agency, during the six-month period of October 1, 2018 through March 31, 2019, there has been an average of two runway incursions per day attributed to general aviation pilots. The fact is, a large airport can be a confusing place for pilots of all kinds of aircraft and all kinds of certificates.