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The way it's supposed to work, the ground controller first verifies that there are no traffic conflicts before clearing vehicles to cross an active runway.
by nradov 8mo ago
The way it's supposed to work, the ground controller first verifies that there are no traffic conflicts before clearing vehicles to cross an active runway.
- bombcar 8mo agoWhich is exactly what failed here, so saying "it shouldn't fail by not failing" doesn't help terribly much. Having grade-separate crossings for vehicles might, but that introduces new issues (plane skidding off runway could hit the incline and break up).
- selectodude 8mo agoO’Hare has those but it’s not helpful for emergencies that happen on the runway itself.
- hypeatei 8mo agoWell, sure, but in that case it's expected that the runway is closed.
- selectodude 8mo agoThe fire truck was responding to an emergency which is why it needed to cross an active runway.
- shrx 8mo agoThat is exactly my point. What visual aids do the ATC controllers have at their disposal to decide if the runway is free for an emergency vehicle to pass?