What does reduced piste staggering mean?
Normally, aircraft must maintain a certain minimum distance from each other after take-off or landing before the runway is cleared for the next aircraft. This distance is determined by the Slope staggering defined.
With the new regulation these minimum distances are reducedso that subsequent aircraft can take off or land earlier. This allows Better utilisation of capacitiesThis is particularly advantageous for small and medium-sized airports with mixed air traffic.
Categorisation of aircraft
The new scale distinguishes between three categories of aircraft:
- Category 1Single-engine propeller aeroplanes with a maximum take-off mass (MTOM) of up to 2,000 kg.
- Category 2:
- Single-engine propeller aircraft with an MTOM between 2,000 kg and 7,000 kg.
- Twin-engine propeller aircraft with an MTOM of under 7,000 kg.
- Category 3All other aircraft, including commercial aircraft and larger jets.
This categorisation is crucial, as the reduced runway separation provides for different minimum distances depending on the aircraft type.
Requirements for the application
To ensure that the reduced scale can be implemented safely, certain Meteorological and operational conditions be fulfilled:
✔ Minimum visibility: The ground visibility must be at least 5 kilometres amount.
✔ Cloud cover: The main cloud base must not be below 1,000 feet lie.
✔ Tailwind limitation: The tailwind component must not maximum 5 knots amount.
✔ Braking effect: The piste must Dry or free from contamination (such as ice, slush or water).
✔ Ground monitoring: Air traffic control must provide suitable means of Distance judgement between aircraft either through optical landmarks or electronic systems.
✔ Traffic information: Following aircraft must be informed of aircraft flying ahead.
✔ Wake vortex staggering: The wake vortices of larger aircraft must still be taken into account.
The staggering is Not appliedwhen an aircraft has just taken off and another aircraft has landed before it.
Minimum distances with reduced piste staggering
The following stagger values apply to aircraft taking off and landing:
Landing aircraft
- Category 1 follows category 1 or 2:
- The aircraft in front must at least 600 metres behind the threshold have passed.
- Category 2 follows category 1 or 2:
- The aircraft in front must at least 1,500 metres behind the threshold have passed.
- Category 1-3 follows category 3:
- The aircraft in front must at least 2,400 metres behind the threshold have passed.
Aircraft taking off
- Category 1 follows category 1 or 2:
- The aircraft in front must at least 600 metres from the starting position be removed.
- Category 2 follows category 1 or 2:
- The aircraft in front must at least 1,500 metres away be.
- Category 1-3 follows category 3:
- The aircraft in front must at least 2,400 metres away be.
These values show that smaller aircraft in particular benefit from the new separation, as they can already maintain significantly shorter distances.
Areas of application and affected airports
The reduced piste staggering will be not at all German airports but only at selected locations with suitable conditions.
Aerodromes with general application (all categories):
✔ Brunswick (RWY 08/26)
✔ Dortmund (RWY 06/24)
✔ Friedrichshafen (RWY 06/24)
✔ Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden (RWY 03/21)
✔ Lahr (RWY 03/21)
✔ Mönchengladbach (RWY 13/31)
✔ Paderborn/Lippstadt (RWY 06/24)
Aerodromes with staggering for category 1 & 2:
✔ Dortmund (RWY 06/24)
✔ Friedrichshafen (RWY 06/24)
✔ Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden (RWY 03/21)
✔ Lahr (RWY 03/21)
✔ Paderborn/Lippstadt (RWY 06/24)
Aerodromes with staggering for category 3:
✔ Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden (RWY 03/21)
This selection shows that Medium-sized regional airports and smaller commercial airports will benefit from this measure.
Conclusion
The introduction of the reduced piste grading at selected German airports represents an important step forward in increasing the efficiency of flight operations. By optimising the use of runways, waiting times can be reduced and Overall capacity of airports better utilised become.
Especially smaller aircraft benefit from shorter distances, while at the same time safety is guaranteed by clear rules and suitable meteorological conditions.
Pilots, airlines and aerodrome operators should familiarise themselves with the new staggering rules and actively incorporate them into their Integrate flight preparations and processesto benefit from the advantages of more efficient utilisation of the runways.
Source references:
NFL (the link requires a subscription to Eisenschmidt)