W
hether you’re trying to get home to spend Christmas with loved ones or embarking
on a much-needed winter holiday, emotions can run high in airports during the peak winter season. When a fl ight delay threatens the ability to reach a destination as planned, passenger frustration can be high.
“We’re often asked why there are so many delays and challenges during peak winter travel times,” says Kelowna Airport Director Sam Samaddar. “Extreme and changeable weather conditions obviously play a big role and aircraft passenger loads are running at 100% capacity. What passengers and their families don’t see is the sophisticated system of checks and balances in place behind the scenes to ensure a safe travel environment, even under these conditions.”
We’re all familiar with the effect cold, snowy, windy or foggy weather can have on planes landing and taking off from Kelowna Airport. When delays occur at connecting airports the impact goes down the line, affecting landing and departure times out of Kelowna as well.
Other factors that contribute to fl ight delays or cancellations are the performance capabilities and limitations of different types of aircraft, the type of navigation system in the cockpit, and the experience of individual pilots. Also a factor at Kelowna is that we are a mountainous terrain airport which means the instrument landing system has operational restrictions.
For an aircraft on approach to the run- way the Minimum Decision Altitude at Kelowna is 251 feet above ground level and 1 mile horizontal visibility. If a pilot on approach cannot acquire the runway visually they have no choice but to abort the landing which may lead to a cancelled fl ight.
The Airport Operations Specialists (AOS) are the pilot’s eyes on the ground and have their own time-sensitive jobs to do in extreme weather conditions. They are constantly monitoring and taking observations of any contamination that is on the runway, taxiway and aprons. The contamination could be water, snow,
Taking Care of Business in Extreme Travel Conditions
| BY TRACEY FREDRICKSON
ice or chemicals which are observed and recorded in terms of their location and depth. These are passed on electronically via a computer based in the operations vehicle to air traffi c controllers who in turn pass the information to the fl ight decks. The pilots use this information to confi gure the aircraft for landing and takeoff and to determine if they can use the runway, as any form of contamination on the runway affects the performance of the aircraft.
The AOS also do their best to remove snow and ice and are always working towards maintaining a bear and dry runway – no easy feat during a snow storm! De-icing of the aircraft to prepare it for departure must take place in a small window of time prior to take-off. The chemical application is done by the ground crew to eliminate snow or ice that may have accumulated on the wing. This adds time to the departure process which again could lead to the fl ight being delayed.
Under such conditions the pressure is on for the AOS, aircraft maintenance crews, air traffi c controllers and fl ight crews to work in concert to identify the right conditions for a safe landing or take-off. “Sometimes it’s like a huge ballet of coordination out there,” says Samaddar. “Critical information is communicated within seconds.”
Despite everyone’s best efforts, there are times when delays and fl ight cancellations occur and in the worst scenario the run- way has to be closed. This happens at YLW usually a couple of times per year. Although closure time is usually less than one hour and rarely affects commercial fl ights.
“Working with the airlines and the media, we try to keep the public informed about arrival and departure conditions on a timely basis,” says Samaddar. But travelers will benefi t from having extra patience during the peak seasons and understanding that everything is being done to get them where they need to go in the safest way possible.”
Tooling and machining for the aerospace industry Repair & maintenance machining CNC machining EDM machining
1565 Stevens Road Kelowna, BC V1Z 1G3
Phn: 250-769-3425 Fax: 250-769-3427
Email:
john.artech@
shawcable.com •
www.artechmachine.com WINTER 2010 5
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32