Airports often face similar problems relating to safety and security but don’t know how others have resolved these problems or where to get specifics on the subject. Recognizing this, the Transportation Research Board (TRB) has a continuing project to gather information from many general aviation airports and share it with all airports to enable faster response to problems, as well as help airport managers avoid making the same mistakes in a trial and error method.
A new publication synthesizes information on nearly every subject of concern to the industry. It reviews resources used by the general aviation community in developing safety and security programs in a compact form and avoids the detailed directions often found in guidebooks.
It is the latest from a group the TRB established several years ago as the Airport Cooperative Research Program, which in the past centered most of its research on airports served by commercial airlines. Airports serving airlines number fewer than 600, only about 3% of the 19,000 landing facilities in the United States. Data in the new publication was gathered through surveys of airport managers, FBOs, and industry trade associations.
The TRB is a division of the National Research Council, which serves as an independent adviser to the President, Congress and federal agencies on scientific and technical questions of national importance. It is jointly administered by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The report is available online. It is available in PDF or may be purchased.
Charles Spence is GAN’s Washington, D.C., correspondent.