March 20, 2019
The FAA has released a Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO 19001) to help operators ensure they have sufficient landing distance to avoid overrunning a paved, wet runway.
“Runway excursions are a leading cause of fatalities in aviation, and wet or contaminated runways are the leading factor in those excursions,” said Richard Boll, who chairs the NBAA Access Committee’s ATC, Airspace and Flight Technologies Working Group. “Hopefully, this new SAFO will help change those trends.”
The SAFO, which updates and replaces the now-canceled SAFO 06012, incorporates the recommendations of the Takeoff and Landing Performance Assessment (TALPA) Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC), which the FAA formed in response to the fatal runway overrun of a Boeing 737-700 in December 2005. The plane, operated by Southwest Airlines, overran the runway, landing in a snowstorm at Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW).
The TALPA initiative is designed to help prevent such accidents by providing runway condition information that correlates with an airplane manufacturer’s landing performance data.
Among the specific highlights of the SAFO are changes to the landing distance factors (LDF) table that NBAA requested to make the terminology more relevant to turboprop pilots. The SAFO also makes TALPA and the LDF table apply to more airplanes, namely those with reciprocating engines.
“NBAA appreciates the FAA’s willingness to work with us to make TALPA more practical for the business aviation community,” said Boll. “Runway excursions are a higher risk in business aviation than among commercial carriers due to business aviation’s unique challenges, such as its frequent use of short runways and runways without skid-resistant surfaces.”
NBAA’s Access Committee has updated three of its TALPA educational videos and its TALPA Quick Reference Card to reflect the SAFO.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.