Runway Accidents Remain Top Safety Concern

Despite attention given to runway incursions and excursions, they remain a top cause of accidents, said runway safety expert Al Gorthy. Gorthy outlined his concerns about runway safety during the Air Charter Safety Foundation’s 2015 Air Charter Safety Symposium last week in Ashburn, Va. 

“Runway incursions and excursions are a problem that just won’t go away. No matter how hard we try they just won’t go away,” said Gorthy, who works with the FAA on surface safety.  Runway incursions and excursions ranked third in types of accidents from 2003 to 2012, behind loss of control and controlled flight into terrain. Runway incursions are lower frequency but have higher consequences, he said.  These often stem from “normalcy bias,” he said, or a belief that “it can’t happen to me.” He said people often focus on active failures and fail to see latent events. But he cited a number of red flags that lead up to incursions, including miscommunication with controllers and distraction. 

Runway excursions happen more frequently, he said, and have a high probability of aircraft damage and/or injury. Approximately 20 percent of excursions occur during takeoff.  These have the most fatalities because of the energy state of the aircraft. Most common reason: rejected takeoff  after V_1, Gorthy said. As for landing excursions, 75 percent occur on dry runways longer than 5,000 feet. Nearly all—95 percent—involve unstabilized approaches as pilots opt against the go-around, he said.