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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: GR/S20000/01
Title: Improving the assessment of risk to occupants and communities due to aircraft operations on and near airports
Principal Investigator: Pitfield, Dr D E
Other Investigators:
Gillingwater, Dr D
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Dr R Caves Dr D Gillingwater
Project Partners:
Department: Civil and Building Engineering
Organisation: Loughborough University
Scheme: Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts: 15 September 2003 Ends: 14 September 2006 Value (£): 302,386
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
Transport Ops & Management
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
Related Grants:
Panel History:  
Summary on Grant Application Form
The need for more runways and the pressure for airport operators to audit the risk from their aircraft operations have made it necessary to improve the assessment of the risks to the aircraft occupants and the general public. Most previous studies have had fundamental methodological weaknesses. They have been one-off studies, using highly selective data sets of previous accidents, uncorrected for site conditions. A recent EPSRC-funded study has addressed these weaknesses for the case of runway overrun accidents. A comprehensive and fully normalised database has been constructed and used to devise risk models. The general methodology was validated, but was constrained by lack of data on the exposure of normal flights to the identified risk factors.It is proposed that the normal flight data be collected and formed into a database, together with an extended database to cover the other accidents that occur before the runway landing threshold, after the runway takeoff threshold and to the side of the runway. Improved risk models will then be developed for overruns and new models devised for landings short of the runway and in the community. The results will better inform discussions on the necessary length of Runway End Safety Areas (RESA) and Public Safety Zones (PSZ).
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Organisation Website: http://www.lboro.ac.uk