Getting Involved in Runway Safety Council

November 29, 2018 - Sean Elliott, EAA’s vice president of advocacy and safety, brought valuable general aviation and EAA perspective to the quarterly meeting of FAA’s Runway Safety Council in Washington, D.C. this week. This was the first time EAA had been invited to participate in this council, which studies incidents and contributing factors at airports throughout the country. It speaks well of EAA’s reputation of seeking unified solutions to common challenges, similar to our work as co-chair of FAA’s GA Joint Steering Committee, which studies GA flight safety, that led to the invitation to join the group.

As the council is heavily airline-focused, EAA’s involvement is important to ensure that any solutions don’t become a ‘one size fits all’ system that hampers recreational aviation. Safety for all airport operations, including runways, taxiways, and lighting, is a priority regardless of what type of aircraft we fly. It was also gratifying to sense that this group would like a closer working relationship with the GA-JSC.

The Runway Safety Council tracks and analyzes airport surface incidents to find common themes where safety can be addressed. The council’s working groups and government/industry interaction build a cooperative relationship that will benefit EAA members who use airports large and small throughout the country.

Look for more about EAA’s participation with this group in the Advocacy section of the January issue of Sport Aviation.