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The International Air Transport Association, the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation and Airports Council International announced a collaborative runway safety initiative aimed at lowering the risk of incursions at airports around the world. A runway incursion takes place when an aircraft, vehicle or person is present on a runway or in its protected area without authorization. According to IATA safety reports, such events have contributed to severe and fatal accidents in the past, requiring coordinated prevention efforts among airlines, airport operators, air navigation providers, regulators and frontline personnel.
The joint program concentrates on three operational priorities, the three organizations reported. It seeks to enhance safety reporting and data gathering on incidents, near misses, precursor events and observations from frontline staff. The initiative will also strengthen Local Runway Safety Teams to better evaluate risks and carry out coordinated mitigation measures while facilitating the exchange of progress updates and operational lessons for adoption at airports facing comparable conditions.
Nick Careen, IATA senior vice president for operations, safety and security, stressed the need for sustained focus to preserve aviation’s strong safety record. “Flying is the safest form of long-distance travel. Maintaining that record requires a relentless focus on continuous improvement, supported by global standards, safety data and collaboration,” Careen said. “This initiative brings airlines, airports and air navigation service providers together to identify runway risks earlier and take co-ordinated action.”
The effort extends prior international frameworks, an IATA assessment found, including the Global Action Plan for the Prevention of Runway Incursions developed by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, EUROCONTROL and the Flight Safety Foundation along with the ICAO Global Runway Safety Action Plan. Practical resources from the three partners include risk assessment frameworks, specialized checklists and implementation kits to aid Local Runway Safety Teams. Specific elements encompass ACI’s Runway Safety Team Implementation Package under its Airport Excellence in Safety program, a joint ACI-CANSO Runway Safety Checklist, IATA’s Runway Incursion Safety Risk Assessment tool, the GAPPRI gap analysis for carriers and risk management reviews via the IATA Operational Safety Audit program.
Federal Aviation Administration figures show the United States recorded 1,758 runway incursions in fiscal 2024, with the rate per million operations falling from 33.532 to 29.489 the previous year. Serious category A and B incursions dropped to nine in fiscal 2024, the lowest level since 2019 and a 59 percent decline from fiscal 2023, FAA data places the share of pilot deviations at nearly 62 percent of total events. The global initiative seeks to apply similar targeted reductions through unified industry action informed by such statistics.
Andrea Sack, CANSO senior vice president for global operations, underlined the importance of teamwork in air traffic management. “Runway safety depends on clear communication and co-ordinated decisions across the airport environment. Strong Local Runway Safety Teams bring controllers, airports, airlines and other operational partners together to identify risks and agree on practical actions,” Sack said. Darryl Dowd, ACI World vice president of safety, security and operations, noted that airports serve as the central point where all operational elements intersect, according to the partners’ announcement.
