Airfield

 Geometric  Design  
Prof.  Amedeo  Odoni  

Istanbul  Technical  University   Air  Transporta5on    Systems    and  Infrastructure  

Air  Transporta5on  Management     Module  4  
M.Sc.  Program     28  April  2014  
 Objective and Outline!
 Review briefly the rationale underlying
the geometric design specifications for
airfields

 Outline:
-  ICAO and FAA Reference Codes
-  Practical observations
-  Principal documents
-  Examples of specifications and
rationale
Page 2
 Airfield Design Specifications!
  The two most-commonly used sources of
geometric specifications for airfield design are:
1. ICAO Annex 14 (“Aerodromes”) [latest 2009,
5th Edition] and many associated documents,
esp. Aerodrome Design Manual, Parts 1 + 2
2.  FAA Advisory Circular 150/5300-13 (“Airport
Design”) [latest: Sept. 2012]
  FAA updates of specifications are usually
developed earlier than updates to ICAO Annex
14 (e.g., Group VI standards)
  Runway length requirements: AC 150/5325-4B
Reference: de Neufville and Odoni, Ch. 9, Secs.
2-3, 5-9 Page 3
ICAO Aerodrome Reference Code!
ICAO Code ICAO Code Element 2
Element 1
Code Reference Code Wing span Outer main
# field length letter (WS) gear wheel
(RFL) span
(OMG)
1 Up to 800 m A Up to 15 m Up to 4.5 m

2 800-1200 m B 15 – 24 m 4.5 – 6 m

3 1200-1800 m C 24 – 36 m 6–9m

4 More than D 36 – 52 m 9 – 14 m
(≥) 1800 m
E 52 – 65 m 9 –14 m

F 65 – 80 m 14 –16 m

Page 4
 FAA Runway Design Code (RDC)!
Aircraft Approach Airplane Design Group (ADG)
Category (AAC) Wingspan (WS) Tail Height (TH)
Approach Speed (AS)   I: < 49 ft <20 ft
<15 m <6 m
  A: < 91 knots
  II: 49 – <79 ft 20 – <30 ft
  B: 91 – <121 knots 15 – <24 m 6 – <9 m
  III: 79 – <118 ft 30 – <45 ft
  C: 121 – <141 knots 24 – <36 m 9 – <13.5 m
  IV: 118 – <171 ft 45 – <60 ft
  D: 141 – <166 knots
36 – <52 m 13.5 – <18.5 m
  V: 171 – <214 ft 60 – <66 ft
  E: 166+ knots
52 – <65 m 18.5 – <20 m
  VI: 214 – <262 ft 66 – <80 ft
65 – <80 m 20 – <24.5 m
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Remarks: ICAO and FAA Airport Reference Codes!

 Practically all major commercial airports belong

to the ICAO Code #4 class
 In practice, Outer Main Gear Wheel Span (ICAO)
is “dominated” by Wing Span
 Similarly, Tail Height (FAA) is “dominated” by
Wing Span
 ICAO Code Letters A-F Wing Spans correspond
exactly to FAA Airplane Design Groups I-VI
wingspans
 Most geometric specifications for airports are
determined by the Wing Span of the most
demanding aircraft
Page 6
 A380 vs. B747-400!

(79.8 m) (64.4 m)

(72.2 m) (70.6 m)

(24.1 m) (19.4 m)

(560 tons) (396 tons)

Page 7
A380 vs. 777-300ER!
Note: Boeing
777-300ER
Is longer than
the A380

Page 88
 A350-800 A350-900
●
747-8

● ●
●
787-8

Page 9
Reference Codes of Wide-Body Aircraft!

Page 10
 Airport Reference Code (ARC)!
 Determined by the “most demanding” aircraft (or
“design aircraft”, or “critical aeroplane”) that the
airport is designed to serve
 The design aircraft need NOT be
–  An aircraft which is currently using the airport
–  An existing aircraft (can be a hypothetical future
aircraft)
 Different runways may have different Runway
Design Codes (RDC): ARC of entire airport will then
be determined by the “highest” RDC available
–  E.g., if RDC of Runway 1 is D-V and of Runway 2
C-III, then ARC is D-V
Page 11
Examples of Geometric Specifications (ICAO Annex 14)!

C D E F
Runway width 45 45 45 60
Taxiway width 18 23 23 25
Runway centerline to taxiway 168 176 182.5 190
centerline
Runway centerline to holdline 90 90 90 107.5
Taxiway centerline to taxiway 44 66.5 80 97.5
centerline
Taxiway centerline to object 26 40.5 47.5 57.5
Taxilane centerline to object 24.5 36 42.5 50.5

•  Distances in meters; assumes instrument runway at sea

level
Page 12
LAX Diagram (October 23, 2008)!

Page 13
LAX: Handling ADG VI Aircraft Today!

Page 14
Rationale for Dimensional Specifications!
 The rationale for many of the dimensional
specifications in the ICAO Annex 14 is provided
in the Aerodrome Design Manual, Doc 9157
(Part 1: Runways, Part 2: Taxiways)
 The Aerodrome Design Manual can also be used
to estimate dimensional specifications for
accommodating future aircraft development (e.g.,
Code Letter G)
 The rationale for some of the FAA’s dimensional
specifications can be found in Appendices 8
(Runways) and 9 (Taxiways) of older versions
(e.g., 1989) of the FAA’s Airport Design advisory
circular (AC 150/5300-13) Page 15
ICAO: Taxiway Centerline to Taxiway Centerline!

S = WS + C + Z

For Code F, WS=80 m, C=4.5 m, Z=13 m; therefore

S=97.5 m
Page 16
Single lane vs. dual lane access to stands!
Source: FAA AC 150/5300-13 (1989 edition)

Note as well:
•  Taxiway to taxiway centerline: 1.2x(wingspan of most
demanding a/c) + 10 ft (3m)
•  Taxiway centerline to object: 0.7x(wingspan of most
demanding a/c) + 10 ft (3m)
Page 17
 Wind Coverage (ICAO)!
 For operations on any given runway, crosswinds
should not exceed [FAA rules roughly the same]:
–  37 km/h (20 knots) for aircraft whose reference
field length is 1500 m or more, except with poor
braking action, when the limit is 24 km/h (13
knots)
–  24 km/h (13 knots) for reference field length
between 1200 m and 1,499 m
–  19 km/h (10.5 knots) for reference field length of
less than 1,200 m
 Crosswind coverage (or “airport usability factor”)
should be at least 95% [same with FAA]
Page 18
Wind Rose and Wind Coverage

Page 19
 ICAO: Obstacle Limitation Surfaces

Source: ICAO
Annex 14

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Questions? Comments?!

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