History of runway numbers

[Lanc53]

I was just explaining to my wife what those big numbers painted on the end of the runway were for, when I suddenly thought, who started this practice of numbering and when? Was it in response to a specific event or just a good idea on some individuals part.

Lanc53

[Blacksheep]

We had a graduate engineer who, during extended Boeing structures training in Seattle, acquired an FAA PPL. One day, when we were discussing magnetic variation over a cup of tea, the matter of runway numbers came up and we pondered over the possible need to renumber runways. "So runway 11 would be heading 110 and the other end would be runway 29, heading 290? I always wondered where the numbers came from." he said. Doh!

[Lightning Mate]

Runway magnetic direction which is why every few years they change with the slow movement of magnetic north.

[Lanc53]

Hi Guys,
I understand the bit a about direction of travel and even that the the Magnetic poles may change. Think I read some where that the earth has changed its Magnetic poles several times over millions of years.

Has any one ever found out who devised this system of numbering runways?
What country / airfield first used it?
Was the scam of a paint salesman with excess brilliant white?:cool:
or a real attempt to aid navigation and safety after some dreadful accident.

Lanc 53

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Not a matter of the earth changing its "magnetic poles" every few million years. The position of the magnetic north pole is constantly changing and when it moves enough to render the runway number incorrect they are changed. Heathrow's main runways used to be 10/28; today they are 09/27.

[chevvron]

Shame on you Bren; don't you recall that Heathrow's runways were originally numbered 1 - 7/8? Some TV news reporters still used these numbers up to a few years ago.
Lanc53, this numbering system had nothing to do with magnetic bearing.

[Shaggy Sheep Driver]

Locals (NOT local pilots, except maybe FAA ones :)) call Manchester's 23R / 05L 'runway one', and 23L / 05R 'runway 2'.

[IGh]

From comment above:
Heathrow's runways were originally numbered 1 - ... 8 ...Tracking Lindbergh's employers & airports, from his job as the initial pilot working CAM #2 (commercial air mail route #2) in April 1926, to Spirit of Saint Louis project of 1927, to his work with "The Lindbergh Line" transiting STL during 1930's, you can watch the runway designators change. Since the largest manufacturer then was Curtiss-Wright, the big factory at STL was first owned by Curtiss-Wright (McD bought it after WWII).

Using old mishap reports of 1940, each with the airport diagram: prior to WWII the hard-surfaced rwys were designated with single-digit designators (anti-clockwise), with each approach-end having a designator-# from runway One to Six (so there were an even-number of rwy's).

Then after WWII, the web shows that aerial photo of KSTL, with the magnetic-number system (the pre-war rwys still visible as today's taxiways):
http://www.usgennet.org/usa/mo/county/stlouis/aviation/1947lambert-full.jpg

Edit -- Dec'1944, Chicago Convention & ICAO; Ch4, Article 37 "Int'l Stds", "... shall adopt ... international standards ... Characteristics of airports and landing areas" later ICAO Annex 14--Aerodromes ...

[Atcham Tower]

I believe the magnetic headings were adopted by the RAF in the UK early in1944 and were inspired by American practice. Prior to that, RAF runways were numbered clockwise from north.

[Lanc53]

From the information given by IGh and Atcham tower it sounds as if we need to look to the USA. There may have been fewer regulations in the past but I cant think that it was left to individual uk airfields to adopt. It must have become the standard at some point. I bet the men from the ministry had a hand in it somewhere.

Thanks guys .
Lanc 53

[Atcham Tower]

You're right about that, Lanc, it was adopted on a certain date in 1944 but I'm not back home till tomorrow evening so I can't check my reference material. This was stuff I found in PRO/TNA when researching back in the 1980s for my book "Britain's Military Airfields 1939-1945".

[Airbanda]

IIRC the announcer who provided a commentary to the Queens Building/Roof Garden referred to runways 1-6 or whatever. This would be around 76-77.

Number 5 I think was 28L (as then).

[Dave Gittins]

My recollection was that 28R/10L was runway 1, 23L/05R runway 3 and 28L/10R runway 5. (they'd given up on the 33s and 23R by then.)

I think I remember from my geological learnings was that the magnetic poles had suddenly altered more than once over the earth's 4,500 million year history so South Became North and Vice Versa. (see para 2 below Earth's magnetic field - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth's_magnetic_field))

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Indeed, Flo and Stan used runway numbers in their commentaries from the QB. I suspect this might have been for two reasons - 1) Joe Public possibly wouldn't understand "28 Left" and 2) the little books about London Airport which could be purchased at the airport showed runway numbers instead of correct designations.

[Dave Gittins]

I think I had one of those little books when I was about 14 ... probably be worth a fortune now.

[DaveReidUK]

Bear in mind also that all runway designators will change this coming Friday, when the earth's magnetic poles are reversed.

Though as the world is due to end immediately afterwards, they probably won't bother ...

[Dave Gittins]

What time on Friday ? .. I'll be flying to Barbados, I'd hate the drivers to turn round half way because the compasses reversed and gave dud info.

[4merAPmgr]

When my airport was first opened in 1928, the runways were designated by letters. Runway "A" later became runway 7-25. Does anyone know when and under what regulation the use of magnetic heading to name runways began?