(USA) Interesting FAA data

[Tuno]

Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:

FacilityType Count
AIRPORT 12641
BALLOONPORT 15
GLIDERPORT 34
HELIPORT 5413
SEAPLANE BASE 497
STOLPORT 80
ULTRALIGHT 135
Total 18815

That's 12875 air/gliderports alone!

In case you're wondering, 12675 of those have described runways.

The number of runways in the air/gliderports:
1 10391
2 1831
3 356
4 72
5 15
6 8
7 1
8 1

I wonder which airport has 8 runways?! (I am not going to check.)

2NO

[jeplane]

I am sure there are others, but San Francisco, ca fits the bill with 8
runways.

Most commercial airports actually have more: Denver, CO= 12 runways,
Long Beach, CA= 10 runways
for example...

[cfinn]

On Jan 2, 9:32*pm, jeplane > wrote:
> I am sure there are others, but San Francisco, ca fits the bill with 8
> runways.
>
> Most commercial airports actually have more: Denver, CO= 12 runways,
> Long Beach, CA= 10 runways
> for example...

I think in this case they are counting both ends of a landing surface
(ie. Rwy 9 & 27) as a single runway for the statistics, considering
the maximum number of runways listed is 8.

[Tuno]

That's krekt. The database shows Denver with 6 and LGB with 5.

[jeplane]

Well then, I am curious!
Which airport in the US has 8 runways (or 16 depending where you are
coming from?)

[Gary Emerson]

Tuno wrote:
> That's krekt. The database shows Denver with 6 and LGB with 5.
If they are counting both ends of the runway, then I'm curious about the
one's with 1, 3, 5, and 7.......

[Cats]

On Jan 3, 1:30*pm, Gary Emerson > wrote:
> Tuno wrote:
> > That's krekt. The database shows Denver with 6 and LGB with 5.
>
> If they are counting both ends of the runway, then I'm curious about the
> one's with 1, 3, 5, and 7.......

One runway with two landing directions = 1 runway in their
statistics. If each direction was counted separately they would all
be even numbers.

So the airport with 8 runways has up to 16 landing directions, but 8
bits of solid stuff on the ground.

[Martin Gregorie[_1_]]

Tuno wrote:
> Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:
>
I've read about an experimental circular runway being built in the USA
during the '20s or '30s:
- where it was
- does it still exist
- how many runways should it be counted as in this database?

Enquiring minds want to know.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

[Tuno]

> Well then, I am curious!
> Which airport in the US has 8 runways...

The national centerline champion is, well, unique. All eight runways
are 1800 by 150 feet. And the airport is completely symetrical around
four axis.

It is owned by the Navy, in Florida:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&time=&date=&ttype=&q=N30%C2%B037'00%22+W087%C2%B008'00%22&ie=UTF8&ll=30.625394,-87.139521&spn=0.026958,0.046349&t=h&z=15&om=1

(No doubt you'll need to reassemble the above link to make it work.)

The airport with "only" seven runways is DFW, with three of them at
13400' in length.

[Tuno]

Wow, that link works.

I forgot to add, the airport is Spencer NOLF (Navy Outlying Field).

[chris]

On Jan 3, 10:16*am, Martin Gregorie >
wrote:

> I've read about an experimental circular runway being built in the USA
> during the '20s or '30s:

Speaking of which, I've been wondering how easy it would be to land in
a curved field. Is there much special technique to landing on a
curved field with trees on the sides? I suppose the biggest challenge
would be to touch down at the right spot tangent to the curve and keep
the right bank angle in through the pattern all the way to the stop.

Suppose somebody could try it on a big square field.

Not dragging the inside wing would be the biggest challenge, maybe a
high wing glider like a K-8 would be easier.

Chris

[Nyal Williams]

Banking would not have a whole lot to do with it after
losing flying speed. The turn would be cause by the
rudder's acting against the wheel and blowng the tail
around-- if you can keep the tail wheel off the ground.
A little bit of bank would probably be helpful but
there would be no need to get the wing tip close to
the ground unless there is a really big cross wind.

At 16:18 03 January 2008, Chris wrote:
>On Jan 3, 10:16=A0am, Martin Gregorie
>wrote:
>
>> I've read about an experimental circular runway being
>>built in the USA
>> during the '20s or '30s:
>
>Speaking of which, I've been wondering how easy it
>would be to land in
>a curved field. Is there much special technique to
>landing on a
>curved field with trees on the sides? I suppose the
>biggest challenge
>would be to touch down at the right spot tangent to
>the curve and keep
>the right bank angle in through the pattern all the
>way to the stop.
>
>Suppose somebody could try it on a big square field.
>
>Not dragging the inside wing would be the biggest challenge,
>maybe a
>high wing glider like a K-8 would be easier.
>
>Chris
>

[Kloudy via AviationKB.com]

Martin Gregorie wrote:
>> Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:
>
>I've read about an experimental circular runway being built in the USA
>- how many runways should it be counted as in this database?
>


hmmm. perhaps 3.14?

--
Message posted via AviationKB.com
http://www.aviationkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/soaring/200801/1

[Bill Daniels]

One technique I've heard discussed is how to land on a center pivot alfalfa
field. The thought expressed was to plan to land crosswind on the downwind
side of the circle so the crosswind helps the glider make the turn to follow
the lane between the pivot arm wheel tracks.


"Nyal Williams" > wrote in message
...
> Banking would not have a whole lot to do with it after
> losing flying speed. The turn would be cause by the
> rudder's acting against the wheel and blowng the tail
> around-- if you can keep the tail wheel off the ground.
> A little bit of bank would probably be helpful but
> there would be no need to get the wing tip close to
> the ground unless there is a really big cross wind.
>
> At 16:18 03 January 2008, Chris wrote:
>>On Jan 3, 10:16=A0am, Martin Gregorie
>>wrote:
>>
>>> I've read about an experimental circular runway being
>>>built in the USA
>>> during the '20s or '30s:
>>
>>Speaking of which, I've been wondering how easy it
>>would be to land in
>>a curved field. Is there much special technique to
>>landing on a
>>curved field with trees on the sides? I suppose the
>>biggest challenge
>>would be to touch down at the right spot tangent to
>>the curve and keep
>>the right bank angle in through the pattern all the
>>way to the stop.
>>
>>Suppose somebody could try it on a big square field.
>>
>>Not dragging the inside wing would be the biggest challenge,
>>maybe a
>>high wing glider like a K-8 would be easier.
>>
>>Chris
>>
>
>
>

[Bob Whelan[_2_]]

Martin Gregorie wrote:
> Tuno wrote:
>> Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:
>>
> I've read about an experimental circular runway being built in the USA
> during the '20s or '30s:
> - where it was
> - does it still exist
> - how many runways should it be counted as in this database?
>
> Enquiring minds want to know.
>
>
Likewise, I've read 'somewhere' of the same circular runway concept
being made and tested, as well as an account by one of the pilots chosen
to take off and land on it.

Unfortunately, I can't lay my hands on the reference (boo hiss). Can't
remember where it was (SW USA, I seem to remember), or when, but I seem
to remember a picture of a 'Douglas SkyRaider-like' plane on the upper
banking (imagine the upside down circumferential bits of a frisbee, from
level through 25-degrees or so of banking).

I also seem to remember: 1) the pilot reporting nothing fundamentally
concept-killing was discovered during the tests...though certainly
re-thinking the concept of 'airport' would've been necessary, and,
making the requisite access tunnels for interior road access would add
to initial costs, and 2) reference to it eventually being torn up.

IIRC, crosswinds weren't an issue during their tests...

Workable circular logic???

Rgds,
Bob W.

[Bob Whelan[_3_]]

Martin Gregorie wrote:
> Tuno wrote:
>> Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:
>>
> I've read about an experimental circular runway being built in the USA
> during the '20s or '30s:
> - where it was
> - does it still exist
> - how many runways should it be counted as in this database?
>
> Enquiring minds want to know.
>
>
Likewise, I've read 'somewhere' of the same circular runway concept
being made and tested, as well as an account by one of the pilots chosen
to take off and land on it.

Unfortunately, I can't lay my hands on the reference (boo hiss). Can't
remember where it was (SW USA, I seem to remember), or when, but I seem
to remember a picture of a 'Douglas SkyRaider-like' plane on the upper
banking (imagine the upside down circumferential bits of a frisbee, from
level through 25-degrees or so of banking).

I also seem to remember: 1) the pilot reporting nothing fundamentally
concept-killing was discovered during the tests...though certainly
re-thinking the concept of 'airport' would've been necessary, and,
making the requisite access tunnels for interior road access would add
to initial costs, and 2) reference to it eventually being torn up.

IIRC, crosswinds weren't an issue during their tests...

Workable circular logic???

Rgds,
Bob W.

[Kloudy via AviationKB.com]

Tuno wrote:
>> Well then, I am curious!
>> Which airport in the US has 8 runways...
>
>The national centerline champion is, well, unique. All eight runways
>are 1800 by 150 feet. And the airport is completely symetrical around
>four axis.
>
>It is owned by the Navy, in Florida:
>
looks like a helicopter practice field or somethin' like that.
The squares sure look like helipads and there's three helos flyin in that
image.

--
Message posted via AviationKB.com
http://www.aviationkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/soaring/200801/1

[Ian Strachan]

On Jan 3, 2:13Â*am, Tuno > wrote:
> Interesting airport numbers from the FAA's NASR datamabase:
>
> Â* FacilityType Â*Count
> Â* AIRPORT Â* Â* Â* 12641
> Â* GLIDERPORT Â* Â*34

Interesting statistics. I guess that you have lots of glider
operations at what the FAA classify as "airports".

UK figures, from the last BGA table of annual club statistics
(published each year in our magazine Sailplane and Gliding) are:

92 BGA Clubs. In terms of sites, these consist of:

26 at airfields with other flying activities
66 operate from their own site (they own or rent the site and are the
prime operator at the site)

Ian Strachan
Lasham Gliding Centre
(yes, we bought the site!)

[Tuno]

> Interesting statistics. I guess that you have lots of glider
> operations at what the FAA classify as "airports".

There are a number of airports shown on the charts as gliderports but
listed in the database as airports. Crystal (CA), Adelnto (CA), and
Pleasant Valley (AZ, aka Turf Soaring) among them. I'm curious how
many others there are.

btw my first set of numbers were incorrect. Should be:
AIRPORT 13903
BALLOONPORT 15
GLIDERPORT 35
HELIPORT 5683
SEAPLANE BASE 526
STOLPORT 87
ULTRALIGHT 147
Total 20396

2NO