Lower Costs

One of the leading causes of general-aviation fatal accidents is

incorrect aircraft maneuvering and landing, especially during evening and

nighttime hours, according to researchers at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical

University.

This is especially critical in remote locations that often depend on air

transportation as the only means to handle medical and disaster-related

emergencies.

To combat the problem, Embry-Riddle researchers and their partners from

the University of Alaska-Anchorage (UAA), the University of North Dakota and

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) are working for the FAA Center of

Excellence for General Aviation to improve night time safety at small general

aviation airports with an innovative, low-cost, and highly portable Remote

Airport Light System (RALS) that uses LED lights and retro- reflective markers.

The lighting system developed by the research team improves the ability

of the pilot to identify the airfield, orient the aircraft to landing, and to

land safely, said the Embry-Riddles's Dan Macchiarella, This is a real boon to

small, rural airports where pilots are currently landing with no lighting system

at all or with the unreliable guidance of improvised systems like smudge pots.

The need is especially great in Alaska where remote airfields that don't

have access to an electrical grid require alternative solutions for the safe

landing of aircraft bearing emergency medical and disaster-relief workers and

supplies.

Macchiarella recently led Embry-Riddle researchers and pilots in a

successful test of the new system, temporarily installed at Massey Ranch Airpark

in Edgewater, FL which included the landing of aircraft guided by RALS. The next

step is installation of the system in Alaska for continued nighttime testing

through December.

In the RALS setup, typical edge lights are replaced with reflective

panels, similar to the technology on road signs, to assist the pilot in safely

landing the aircraft. This kind of marker requires no power and is more brightly

visible when lit by an aircraft's landing lights.

The system uses low-powered LED lights to mark the corners of the landing

strip, and flash in synchronization with Global Positioning System (GPS) time to

give pilots improved cues for airfield identification and landing.

Considering that a standard FAA- approved lighting system can cost

anywhere from $100,000 to $1 million, depending on the number of runways and

taxiways, the test system is a bargain at only $3,000.

The LED lights have a lifetime of about 25,000 to 30,000 hours, last 10

to 20 times longer than the incandescent bulbs typically used, and reduce energy

consumption by about two-thirds.

<<Air Safety Week -- 07/22/08>>