Airfields 1. Demonstrating Lit Gate Lead in Lines
LEDline® safety and guidance units are by Far the most versatile and Least Cost Airfield Visual Aids to Purchase and To Install.
LEDline® safety guidance lighting is usually installed in days, not weeks or months. Five (5) people with one (1) saw-cut machine, should be able to retrofit and install some 250 x LEDline® safety guidance lamps, with their power supplies and controls, in about five (5) working days, (depending on weather). How long would 250 x standard airfield lamps cost and take to install? their 250 x steel cans; the buried series circuits; the CCRs (constant Current Regulator); all of the controls their cost; All The construction site avoidance requirements etc.; It would take months not days!!
Bad weather plays a major role in slowing down airfield operations and airports; this costs everyone, time and money!
it does not matter if it's rain, snow, fog, or dust, at night, in bad weather, pilots and drivers on airfields, have great difficulty following painted visual aid markings. Therefore, relying on such painted markings in bad weather;
• slows down aircraft and other operations as pilots and drivers try to ensure they are following the difficult-to-see painted guidance lines and paths;
• slows down operations, which immediately reduces the airfields and the terminal/s capacity. Such reduced capacity means more airfield and terminal delays, which all continue to impact operations, even when the weather improves;• causes increased accidents, especially around busy terminals. Issues, such as increased wingtip collisions can occur when tug drivers cannot see the painted markings and accidentally push the aircraft out crooked. • can certainly impact surface vehicles around terminals, who for aircraft and other vehicle safety, are supposedly following pre-determined painted marking routes around the busy airfield/terminals. However, if the painted markings cannot be seen, such vehicles may wander or take shortcuts into areas where they are not supposed to be, which can cause accidents.
It is important, particularly around busy terminals, to have pavement markings visible in any weather. Having inexpensive, easily installed lit LEDline® around the terminals significantly helps minimize bad weather delays at minimal cost, by;
• making key painted markings visible in any weather, this reduces possible bad weather accidents;
• minimizing aircraft turnaround times;
• reducing airfield and airlines' bad weather lost time, so reducing the following good weather catch-up times;
• improving bad weather airfield safety and capacity;
All SAVING EVERYONE TIME AND MONEY!
Lit Gate lead in Lines At Anchorage International: Here, the deep snow has covered all of the painted pavement markings, yet the old-style (incandescent bulbed, more heat than light so melts snow), green FAA taxiway way visual aids (left),
and the old style, (only 6 x LEDs, yet still melts snow), yellow linear LEDline® (right), are both still clearly visible, providing the necessary key guidance when aircraft and vehicles most need it.
Pictures by Chas Triborn.
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LEDline® Safety guidance lighting Uses:
Non-Movement Airfield LEDline® safety guidance Use:
Non-Movement Areas: LEDline® is used for all sorts of inexpensive lit in-pavement markings in non-movement areas, such as;• lit lead-in lines to gates; • lit guidance lines for surface vehicles around terminals;• lit aircraft visual aid guidance through de-icing pads;• lit aircraft guidance in overnight aircraft parking areas;• lit in-pavement signage, to help guide aircraft and vehicles anywhere;• lit guidance through refueling areas.
All of the above lit guidance helps to reduce accidents in and around terminals in non-movement areas, so often does not require CAA permission.
Lit LEDline® Gate Lead In Lines Allows For;• Improved Gate Safety: Air terminal floodlighting causes large shadows under aircraft, particularly wide-bodied aircraft. This impacts gate security and safety as people working under the aircraft, in such shadows, are difficult to see. Lit LEDline® safety lead-in lines, provide lighting underneath aircraft so anyone there is visible. This;• provides for faster aircraft turnaround times, reducing jet fuel usage, which reduces airline costs;
• Improved Aircraft Safety: In bad weather, tug drivers can not always see the painted pavement gate markings, which can lead to wing tip aircraft damage accidents, as aircraft are pushed out crooked. However, they can always see the lit LEDline® safety guidance lead-in lines, so can ensure that aircraft are pushed out straight, minimizing possible wing tip collision accidents;
• Allows for Notice to All Passing Aircraft and Vehicles That An Aircraft is Being Pushed Out from The Gate. Here, the lit lead-in lines can be set to flashing when an aircraft is being pushed out. This would be visible to anyone passing the gate and would indicate to everyone who sees it, that an aircraft was being pushed out, minimizing possible accidents with any passing vehicles or aircraft;
• Inexpensive Lit Lead-in Lines to Gates: Since LEDline® is easily installed, it is approx. 60% less cost compared to standard inset lights and even less cost compared to the new styled LED ones;
• LEDline®"s Quick Installation, Minimizes Gate Downtimes: Many gates can saw cut at the same time, as the LEDline® saw cut width, is only 60mm (2.4") wide, therefore, most gates can still be operational even when the saw cut is open. Only one gate at a time ever needs to be closed for 24 hrs., as this is to allow the LEDline® installation's glue to set;
• Improved Gate Efficiencies and Safety, minimize's bad weather delays, saving money for all.
Below, at Anchorage International, the snow has covered up all of the painted pavement markings, yet the lit, yellow LEDline® safety guidance lighting, (old style, with only 6 x LEDs), is still clearly visible.
(Note: Today's solid LEDline® safety guidance units have 12 x embedded LEDs so are much brighter and still melt snow).
At Anchorage International, the deep snow has covered up all of the painted pavement markings, yet the (left), standard green FAA taxiway visual aids, (incandescent bulbed, more heat than light, so melts snow) are still visible.
The old-style, only 6 x LEDs, yellow linear LEDline® safety guidance lamps, (right) are also clearly visible. And, they too melt the snow.
LEDline® safety guidance lighting system is the only LED visual aid that melts snow without having any additional
heating elements.
Pictures Below by Chas Triborn.
Airfield possible Movement Area LEDline® safety guidance lighting use:
Civil Aviation Authorities (CAA), must provide permission to use LEDline® safety guidance lighting in Movement Areas. However, provided the LEDline® guidance is used AS A SUPPLEMENT to the standard FAA / CAA / ICAO Annex 14 requirements, to improve airfield safety by making painted pavement markings visible in any weather, the FAA and any other Civil Aviation Authorities should not object to using LEDline® safety guidance in Airfield Movement Areas.
Possible LEDline® use As A SUPPLEMENT in Movement Areas for; • Taxiways, supplementing the standard painted pavement taxiway markings and the lit taxiway/runway signs with lit in-pavement taxiway/runway signage and numbers;
• Using LEDline® on moveable platforms, as temporary moveable signage indicating closed sections of the airfield;
• Using LEDline® to help wigwags be more clearly seen and become more conspicuous. By having the lit in-pavement LEDline® across the whole taxiway width, flashing with the taxiway edge wigwags, the wigwags would be much more conspicuous. And, since all such lit markings would be visible in any weather, by supplementing and supporting the taxiway edge wigwags, perhaps LEDline® could further help reduce runway incursions?
• Highlighting early runway exits onto taxiways for smaller aircraft. Here, lit arrows set into the runway pavement could indicate the early runway exits to taxiways for smaller aircraft, so they don't hold up the landings of any of the following heavies that need to use the whole runway to stop.
ALL OF THE ABOVE SUPPLEMENTAL USE OF LEDline®, INCREASES THE SAFETY AND EFFICIENCY OF THE AIRFIELD IN ALL WEATHERS!
gREEN LEDline® SAFETY GUIDANCE Use at Anchorage International
as Guidance through their Refueling Area.
The green LEDline® is as visible as any standard FAA / ICAO GREEN Taxiway visual aids.
gREEN LEDline® SAFETY GUIDANCE LIGHTING is used right next to
standard Green FAA Taxiway Lights.
Can you tell which is which?
Please see the next page, airfield 2. for the answer.
MOVEMENT AREAS: Whilst most Civil Aviation Authorities (CAA); ICAO; the FAA; the UK; France; and many other CAAs all know about LEDline® SAFETY GUIDANCE, it has yet to be approved for Movement Areas. As such, local CAA authorities must provide permission to use LEDline® safety guidance in Movement Areas, and requests to use it there should make it clear that it is being used
to supplement and enhance the standard taxiway/runway SAFETY SIGNAGE and painted markings.
Additional Information is Available at HIL-Tech Ltd. at nhutchins@cogeco.ca
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