3 ms·
It's rarely economically feasible to tank in enough water to form an ice runway for heavy aircraft. They will need to rely primarily on heavy snowfall and then
by oldbbsnickname 3y ago
It's rarely economically feasible to tank in enough water to form an ice runway for heavy aircraft. They will need to rely primarily on heavy snowfall and then prepare that as a hard surface that can bear the pressure load of the aircraft takeoff roll. If there are large wood mills nearby, pykrete reinforcement maybe an option.
And they better plan for EMAS at the end of the usable length of this or that plane is likely to skid off into the woods.
Interesting read: Improving Construction and Performance of a Runway in Nuiqsut, Alaska. ASCE. 2021. https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/9780784483589.026 https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/9780784483589.026
- culebron21 3y agoWell, if you pour a bit of water on snow, it melts and then freezes altogether, forming ice too. You don't need large volumes of water for that, just couple of trucks of water twice a week. Plus, the ground is frozen 1 m deep by January. It's hard enough for one take-off roll.