Design and Installation Details for Airport Visual Aids - a PDH Online Course for Engineers, Surveyors and Architects

Design and Installation Details for Airport Visual Aids

Course Outline

This 6 hour course will cover the design procedures for runway lights, edge lights, beacon tower height requirements, and many additional design requirements of airport lighting. Several examples and calculations will be presented to aid in understanding the course material.

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student would have learned the following:

The type of edge lighting system installed on runways;
Where to locate runway edge lights;
The colors emitted from threshold lights;
Types of lights required for CAT I runways;
The percent brightness of High Intensity Runway Light (HIRL);
Where to install end indicators;
Where to install clearance bars;
The spacing requirements of taxiway edge lights;
How to orient elevated RGLs’;
The colors emitted from stop bar/ runway guard lights;
When obstruction lights should be turned on;
The ideal locations for wind cones;
The elevation in which to place obstruction lights;
How to control automatic runway lights;
Power configuration for various airports;
Various aircraft height groups;
How to define a Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI);
How to determine the distance of the PAPI from the runway threshold;
The static loads produced by aircraft parked on lighting fixtures;
Methods to reduce electromagnetic interference (EMI);
How to calculate the total load of a fixture;
The requirements for Land and Hold Short Operations (LAHSO);
The minimum volume of a concrete anchor used with an airfield light base; and
How to determine the height of beacon towers.

Intended Audience

This course is intended for airport designers, architects, transportation engineers, aerospace engineers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, environmental engineers, municipal engineers, project managers, and any persons working in civil engineering field or anyone with an interest in the exciting and dynamic world of aviation and airport design.

Benefit to Attendee

This course is designed so that the intended audience will benefit immediately with the information to design efficient roadside channels with flexible linings.

Course Introduction

Airport visual aids are used to provide guidance to pilots maneuvering on the ground and while departing and landing at airports. With thousands of flights occurring each day, air travel have to conform to certain criteria to ensure the safe operation of aircraft and its passengers. Due to the often complexities of air traffic control and air flight these visual aids are essential to safe air travel. Several safety measures are built into each visual aid including electrical backup systems.

Course Content

This course will cover the design and installation details for airport visual aids. Several examples and calculations will be presented to aid in understanding the course material. Detailed illustrations are shown in the appendix, as well as definitions, with a discussion of operations and maintenance. The student will be directed to study the document “Design and Installation Details for Airport Visual Aids,” as published on the website of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Design and Installation Details for Airport Visual Aids

(http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/advisory_circular/150-5340-30D/150_5340_30d.pdf)

Please click on the above underlined hypertext to view, download or print the document for your study. Because of the large file size, we recommend that you first save the file to your computer by right clicking the mouse and choosing "Save Target As ...", and then open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you still experience any difficulty in downloading or opening this file, you may need to close some applications or reboot your computer to free up some memory.

Course Summary

This course contains very useful knowledge that can be utilized by the engineer and designer of airports and runways to implement measures that will help to maintain the safety of our airports.

Using good engineering judgment is always paramount in any situation. Utilizing good judgment and the knowledge gained in this course will aid the reader with the knowledge to be a success in the Design and Installation Details for Airport Visual Aids.

Related Links

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites:

Federal Aviation Administration:
http://www.faa.gov/

Federal Highway Administration:
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/

Transportation Research Board:
http://www.trb.com

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.