Wingin' It - Arlington Municipal Airport Newsletter Wingin' It - Issue 4 - March 2015

Wingin’ It
Arlington Municipal Airport Newsletter
Issue 4—March 2015
www.arlington-tx.gov/Airport
Visibility Minimums Increase to ¾-Mile
Runway 34 is currently served by an instrument landing system (ILS) which consists of
a glideslope antenna, localizer antenna, and medium intensity approach lighting
system (MALS) with runway alignment indicator lights (RAIL). Combined, the system is
known as a MALSR.
5000 S. Collins Street
Arlington, TX 76018
Ofc: 817-459-5570
Fax: [phone]
In 2009, the FAA asked the Airport to accept a MALSF (MALSR without the RAIL). In
2010, as the MALSF project was nearing completion, the FAA informed the City it was
raising the minimum approach requirement. A MALSR was now required for a ½-mile
minimum, so FAA Flight Standards commissioned our MALSF with a ¾-mile minimum.  When driving on the air-
port, remember the speed
The ¾-mile minimum remained until 2014 when the FAA finally added the RAIL to the
limit is 15 mph
MALSF. The MALSR was commissioned, and the FAA published an updated ILS ap-
proach with ½-mile visibility minimum. This change increased the area of the Runway
 Air safety and surface
Protection Zone (RPZ), which is sized according to design aircraft and the instrument
error prevention program
landing minimums. The ½-mile minimum RZP is 800 feet longer, and includes land out-
pamphlets are available on
side the Airport’s control, zoned as residential. This is an incompatible land use, and
request
because of recent incidents, the FAA no longer grants variances with runway protec-
tion zone (RPZ) standards.
 If you notice suspicious
Focus on Safety
A second issue arose with the ½-mile minimum when our Development Plan consult-
ants, Coffman and Associates, determined that the Airport needed to move to a De-
sign Group III category because of the number of large aircraft operations. A Design
Group III, plus an ILS with a ½ mile minimum requires a runway width of 150 ft., 50 ft.
wider than our current runway. However, at a ¾-mile minimum, FAA Standards allow
a 100 ft. runway in Design Group III.
behavior, make notes or
take a photo of the activity.
Call airport operations at
817-459-5571 . Keep your
distance and don’t take
risks with your safety.
(continued on Page 2)
Inclement Weather Hits GKY
When treating the Runway and Taxiways,
we use an FAA-approved liquid, Potassi-
um Acetate. This product will melt ice
and snow, but it’s most effective when
applied before a storm, to prevent the ice
and snow from bonding to the pavement.
This makes it easier for the plows to push
the ice and snow off the pavement. How-
ever, this particular storm was preceded
by several hours of rain, before changing
over to sleet, and finally to snow.
(continued on Page 4)
NEED ASSISTANCE
AFTER HOURS?
OPERATIONS STAFF CAN BE
REACHED 24/7 BY CALLING
817-459-5571
Comments or Suggestions for
Upcoming Newsletters?
email airport @arlingtontx.gov
or call Trudi loy at 817-459-5570