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finer Points...

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destination airfield, with the most severe
conditions reported on the field's automatic
terminal information service (ATIS) recording or a notice to airmen (notam).
However, much of the information
received by ATC often comes directly from
pilot reports of braking action...meaning
that, in some cases, flight crews may inadvertently find themselves playing the role
of test pilot on landing. Larger airfields may
also have the ability to measure braking
action with continuous friction measuring

six, for the most favorable conditions to
the least.
A Cautionary Tale
With thousands of hours at the controls
of such heavy equipment as U.S. Air Force
C-5 Galaxy transports and a variety of corporate aircraft, Gary Cooke may not seem a
likely candidate to have ridden a jet off an
icy runway. That's exactly what happened in
2011, however, when he was the non-flying
crewmember on a Citation that "became
a sled" on landing. As Cooke-now a cap-

slipped just a bit sideways-it started out
really slow, and then got away from us. We
went off the runway spinning counterclockwise, and came to rest at a 220-degree
angle to the runway heading. All four [main
gear] tires deflated when we hit the dirt, and
a wing slat got kinked."
Cooke noted that, "All told the damage
came to $100,000. A flight attendant deadheading on our flight got out to examine the
damage and promptly fell down on the runway. It was a sheet of ice. The tug that was

...the pilot flying said, 'I've got nothing.' No
braking or deceleration. As we continued
down the runway, the plane slipped just a bit
sideways-it started out really slow, and then
got away from us. We went off the runway
spinning counterclockwise, and came to rest
at a 220-degree angle to the runway heading.
equipment, or CFME. The FAA has cautioned against an over-reliance on the accuracy of these measurements for several
reasons, though, including significant disparities between the weight of the test vehicle (often a small car or truck) and that of a
landing aircraft. In addition, CFME readings
may be taken only from a relatively small
section of the runway, and not across the
entire area available for landing.
In September 2014, the FAA published
a revised version of Advisory Circular (AC)
91-79A (see "Runway Safety" sidebar),
detailing methods for pilots and airplane
operators to identify, understand, and
mitigate risks associated with runway
overruns on landing. In addition to aligning accepted reporting braking action
verbiage with International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) practices (replacing
the term "fair" with the aforementioned
"medium") the amended guidance also
discusses the FAA's Runway Condition
Assessment Matrix (RCAM) for determining runway conditions. That standard
decreases reliance on Mu ratings in favor
of quantifiable measurements of standing
precipitation and temperature at the landing airfield, with ratings between zero and
2

tain and safety manager with the flight
department of a major pharmaceutical
chain-recalled the experience, it is easy
to identify several potential "links" in the
accident chain.
"Unbeknownst to us, there was a braking action reading available before we
departed for the airport, but it hadn't been
transmitted," Cooke recalled. "We also
asked to land with the very slight headwind
present at the time, but were told an aircraft was landing in the opposite direction,
and we didn't want to be a bother. Just
as we established on a three-mile final,
the tower asked the aircraft that had just
landed ahead, 'How's braking action?' but
that crew didn't reply at first; they finally
did just as we flew over the threshold, 'Uh,
we'd call it poor.' They later told the FBO
that it had taken 'all they had' to get their
jet stopped.
"Now, we understood it would be slick,"
Cooke continued. "We had also determined
not to use thrust reversers over concerns
with ingesting snow and sand into the
engines, which played a key role. So, we
touched down...and the pilot flying said, 'I've
got nothing.' No braking or deceleration. As
we continued down the runway, the plane

sent out to retrieve our plane had to go all
the way over to the other side of the runway
because they couldn't get traction."
Today, Cooke recounts the experience
in workshops and seminars addressing
runway excursion prevention, including
several venues sponsored by USAIG. "We
had gone down the primrose path that
everything was fine," he admitted. "There
are obviously lots of lessons to be learned
from hindsight, and we conducted an
extensive internal investigation-later validated by an independent examiner-that
identified errors in several steps in our
process. We changed our SOPs [standard
operating procedures] and implemented
crosswind limitations for Mu readings and
braking advisories.
"And the kicker is," Cooke concluded,
"that we later learned our concern about
damaging the engines by using the thrust
reversers wasn't warranted. They're
designed to ingest sand without significant damage."
Freelance aviation writer Rob Finfrock has
authored more than 300 articles for numerous aviation organizations and publications.
He flies a Remos GX light sport aircraft.



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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015

Premium on Safety - Issue 16, Year 2015
Table of Contents
The Finer Points of Runway Braking Action Reporting
Best Practices: Can We (Still) Land There?
Partnering With Your Local Airport for Safety
ASI Message: Success Expectation
Lessons Learned: Wrapping It Up
SMS Corner: Six Ways to Lose Money
USAIG Safety Posters
Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015 - The Finer Points of Runway Braking Action Reporting
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Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015 - Best Practices: Can We (Still) Land There?
Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015 - Partnering With Your Local Airport for Safety
Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015 - Lessons Learned: Wrapping It Up
Premium On Safety - Issue 16, 2015 - SMS Corner: Six Ways to Lose Money
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