Winter Operations, Friction Mesurements and Conditions for Friction Predictions

Aviation report 2011/10

Over a 10-year period, the Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN) has received 30 reports of accidents and incidents related to operations on contaminated and slippery runways. Nine of these concerned accidents and serious incidents. In the same period AIBN has published 12 investigation reports and issued 36 safety recommendations. There is much uncertainty associated with measured/estimated runway friction coefficients (FC) and aircraft braking coefficients (ABC). Hence landing distances or maximum landing weights calculated on the basis of measured/estimated friction coefficients are also uncertain. This has contributed to accidents and incidents where aircraft departed the runways because the surface was more slippery than expected. This theme investigation focuses on the general framework for winter operations and the factors related to meteorology, runway, regulations and operations that reduce the safety margins and increase the uncertainty on contaminated and slippery runways. The report is divided into three volumes. Volume I Executive Summary, Volume II Main Report and Volume III Appendices A-Z.

Animation of the serious aviation incident with LN-BRV at ENEV on 30 January 2005

Animation of the serious aviation incident with OY-VKA at ENTO on 26 March 2006

Animation of the serious aviation incident 25 January 2010 at Svalbard, ENSB

Facts