Runway Safety Area and Runway Incursion Mitigation Programs

The safety of the runway includes reducing damage that may occur in the runway. Safety means avoiding the use of incorrect runways due to inappropriate presence (intrusion) of the aircraft, improper exit (deviation), and confusion. Because of weather conditions and aviation safety, the state of the runway is the current state of the runway. Invasion into the runway involves an aircraft, a second aircraft, a vehicle or people. It is defined by ICAO and the US Federal Aviation Administration as "every incident at the airport, including the presence of aircraft, vehicles or people on protected areas designated for landing and takeoff."

The US Federal Aviation Administration publishes an annual report on runway safety issues on FAA's website. A new system designed to improve the safety of the runway like the Airport Sports Area Security System (AMASS) and Runway Consciousness Advisory System (RAAS) is described in the report. When the runway of San Francisco International Airport was invaded in 2007, AMASS hardly prevented conflict.

Today, the US Federal Aviation Administration is working on reducing runway penetration by tracking and identifying aircraft and other vehicles passing through the airport. The US Federal Aviation Administration is working hard on the implementation of the Airport Sports Area Security System (AMASS) software. Due to the frequency of software errors and alarms, it is several years behind. For this reason, FAA wishes to use GPS navigation technology to create a surface display technology that provides portable map display and electronic mobile head-up display. This technology is developed by NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Steve Zaidman, who is responsible for research and development at the Federal Aviation Administration, says: "They reminded air traffic controllers of the possibility of collision and gave reaction time of about 20 seconds" (Trimble, p. 13)