Runway closures due to bad weather
 

Who's legally responsible for making the decision to close a runway at a major airport?

Legally responsible??

As the airport operator/owner owns the airport property and is therefore responsible for its maintenance (which may be subcontracted etc. etc.) it is the airport operator who is responsible, simply because they own it. So BAA, Manchester airports group take the decision and then clear the runway.

ATC are obviously informed that this is happening (a runway closure) and they deal with it accordingly.

As an ATCO, I do not have the authority to close an airfield/airport due to bad weather; as the previous poster has said, this is the responsibility of those who get paid much more than I do. Closing a runway is a similar matter; if the airfield only has a single runway then the ATCO cannot close this; more than one runway and the ATCO can choose the most suitable runway for operating from.

If the weather gets that bad, all we can do is ensure that the ATIS is correct and up to date, and offer what assistance we can to those who decide that they wish to land/depart.

;)

Airport Operations, a.k.a AirOps.

Its their decision and I'm quite happy to let them take responsibility for it and all the subsequent crap which goes with it.

Where I use to work, and the airport 'owned' ATC, the ATC Watch Manager was effectively the Airport Ops Manager so we took the decision. Then as Manager ATC I owned the whole problem! :eek:

The troops had a standing instruction to phone me when it was snowing. I struggled home once in a blizzard only to walk through the door to be handed the phone to be told "It's snowing" . . . :ugh:

Then we joined NATS and I could put my feet on the desk until someone told me the runway was open . . . . :)

Ahhh Vintage

times of 3 on a night shift because someone couldn't get in from Bedford or Cambridge or somewhere :mad:; you out in a knackered Landie freezing your bits off :\, & the remaining 2 fielding aircraft & phone calls as best we could!

Can't say I miss it that much :ok:

Tori

Most smaller aiports ie Southend etc the ops are

At the international space port airport I worked at, the Aerodrome Duty Manager would do a runway inspection and decide. That said, if ATC thought it was potentially dangerous, they would request that inspection to happen.

Thus; ATC would normally start the action toward a closure be it by supplying the weather observation or other information, but the aerodrome authority is 'responsible' for the actual closure.

THAT SAID:

At the two regional airports I worked at, ATC were the designated authority on the airfield. Basically, we have approval to make the decision on their behalf. ATC will go out on a runway inspection with ops & decide based on the books / professional knowledge / experience whether its safe enough to use. You have to be able to justify it, but isnt that the way of the world today?

:ok:

I actually thought it was illegal to 'close' an airport (I suppose it is not quite the same as closing a runway). I seem to (almost) remember a story where PanAm sued LHR because they did close a runway.

Weather and airfield inspections specify the state of the airfield and surrounding conditions, this is reported and then airlines/aircrew decide if that meets their minima, if it's good enough they will come!