Prototype of the Runway Monitoring Process at Smaller Airports: Edvard Rusjan Airport Maribor

Modelling of Evenness of Runways as an Element of Sustainable Airport Maintenance

The elevation of airport runways is specified in the operations manuals and in globally accepted design guidelines. Airport runways are constantly exposed to various physical and weather factors. However, these factors can deteriorate the condition of the runway to the point where it becomes unusable. Monitoring and the continuous inspection of runway evenness is an important element of a sustainable airport maintenance system. An important element of a sustainable airport maintenance system is a runway evenness detection and modelling system. The investigation of the use of various available methods for modelling runway evenness was conducted based on measurements of the actual condition of the existing runway at Edvard Rusjan Airport in Maribor, Slovenia. During the measurements of the runway condition, our own measurement equipment was used, which ensures the geodetic accuracy of the measurements. The novelty of the article is a comparison between five different approaches to modelling runway evenness: approximation with regression plane, inverse distance weighted interpolation (IWD) with a weighting factor of 1, 2, and 10, and interpolation based on a triangulated irregular network (TIN)–linear and cubic. In the methodology section, the advantages and disadvantages of the mentioned methods were described. The selected models were evaluated by required processor time, by the file size resulting from the modelling, and by the values of the descriptive statistics of the model deviation at the average uniform slope. It was found that the modelling method using linear triangular irregular network interpolation provided the most useful results. The results of the conducted analysis can be easily used in any runway management models at airport thet allow for professionally based actions aimed at ensuring the safety and efficiency of runway operations, especially at smaller, regional airports.

Optimization and Development of the Model for Monitoring the Deformations on the Airport Runways

The demand for safety and to provide safety are increasing, parallel with the growth of the need for mobility, transport and logistics. A big part of the demands and recommendations to provide safety in air traffic is related to the safety at and in the surroundings of the runways. The research focused on exploring the airport infrastructure; mainly with the aim of detecting and monitoring the deformations (cracks, displacements, etc.) of the runways which are causally connected with unusual landings or taking offs, with trips from the runways and with loss of control over the aircraft during the landings, taking offs and while moving the runways or taxiways, etc., and researching their effect on providing safety and the efficiency of the airports’ function. The research was executed at the Maribor Edvard Rusjan Airport in three phases; the first two were meant for geodetic measurements to determine vertical deformations and the third for supplementary measurements to determine static load capacity. The result of the research is an innovative model for the continuous monitoring of the deformations on the runways. The suggested model enables determination and display of the areas of the vertical deviations which are impossible to detect with a visual check-up, joining the supplementary methods and assessing the condition of the runway based on executed measurements.

The Innovative Model of Runway Sustainable Management on Smaller Regional Airports

Airport runways are exposed to large traffic loads and other external factors which cause their transformation. Monitoring the state of the unevenness and determining the runway defectiveness is a complex procedure which includes fast and qualitative measurements of the execution of flatness, their evaluation and the determination of the level of runway defectiveness. For this purpose, an improved process of determining airport runway defectiveness is proposed, based on geodetic survey and the management information system prototype, which enables evaluating the results of the executed survey and suggesting the runway maintenance measures. A similar analysis of the considered data on the example of a smaller, regional airport in Maribor, Slovenia, was performed with the help of our own algorithm, which, on various platforms, enables the tabular and graphical display of surface irregularities. The algorithm prototype allows the automated monitoring and evaluating of the unevenness or runway states, determining their defectiveness and advising adequate action. With the help of the suggested method and developed information system prototypes, it is possible to confirm the demand for professionally adequate and on-time planning of necessary maintenance works, with which it is surely possible to prevent an eventual unexpected closing of the runway and related costs. The suggested method is also usable in evaluating the state of other traffic infrastructure.

Innovative Business Model for the Management of Airports in Purpose to Identify Runway Damage in Time

Runways are exposed to significant burdens and other external factors that cause their deformation. Monitoring runway deformities and determining the resulting damage is a complicated procedure which requires a rapid and accurate assessment of these deformities and evaluation of the damage they cause. In this study, an optimized process to determine this damage based on geodetic measurements was developed. A novelty of our research is a prototype model for the maintenance of smaller airport runways with an emphasis on damage detection. The model is also intended for sustainable development, as it is open source in which we can enter various data. A model and algorithm that enables tabulation and graphical display of surface anomalies were developed for the detailed analysis of the collected data. This model allows monitoring of runway deformities to determine the resulting damage, thus facilitating timely planning of necessary maintenance. As a result, unexpected runway closures and related high costs can be prevented. In this study, we also compared the obtained results with those obtained using the open-source program Quantum GIS (QGIS) to confirm the accuracy and applicability of the algorithm.