Aviation Safety Technologies (AST) is the world’s leading real-time braking action and surface condition reporting company for aviation.
AST’s SafeLand™ Surface Management System is the world’s first service using real-time data from both landing aircraft sensors and vehicle-mounted mobile sensors. SafeLand™ works with all aircraft types and all airport surfaces to help improve landing safety, drive more efficient airport operations, increase runway uptime, and assure more reliable flight schedules for the traveling public.
The new ASTM International Standard E3266 for Friction-Limited Aircraft Braking Measurements and Reporting applies to systems that measure and report on braking forces and runway friction. This standard applies to any automated system that uses data from an aircraft to create what ASTM International calls an Aircraft Braking Action Report. Any such system may be installed on an aircraft or operated remotely.
Our roots reach back to 2007, when the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), in response to continuing landing overruns and runway excursions in U.S. airports, recommended that the FAA should:
“Demonstrate the technical and operational feasibility of outfitting transport-category airplanes with equipment and procedures required to routinely calculate, record, and convey the airplane braking ability required and/or available to slow or stop the airplane during the landing roll. If feasible, require operators of transport-category airplanes to incorporate use of such equipment and related procedures into their operations.”
In response to this mandate, the FAA created guidelines for assessing and reporting airport conditions through the utilization of the Runway Condition Assessment Matrix (RCAM). The latest rev of RCAM Requirements of AC 150-5200-30 became effective on October 1, 2016.
Boasting a decade of impeccable field operation, AST’s SafeLand™ Surface Management System is currently being used by 1,600+ commercial aircraft and is recording 6,000+ landings a day. It has been used to aid accident and incident investigations. It’s been tested in scientific research within the Joint Winter Runway Friction Program (sponsored by NASA, FAA, and other research organizations). The reporting system is successfully operating on both Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
There are no limitations to using this system on any aircraft, regardless of manufacturer or origin.
Engagements with commercial carriers and airports are ongoing, helping to further enhance the reliability and accuracy of the technology.
In 2016, AST completed a Feasibility Study with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It was published as FAA Broad Agency Announcement DTFACT-13-R-00009, entitled “Determining Runway Friction Conditions in Real Time Using Data Obtained from Airplanes during Landing Rollout.” The project was successfully completed for the FAA in May, 2016.
The Dillon Kane Group (DKG) turns great software into great business. DKG is a privately-held group of affiliated companies that invests in, builds, and revitalizes technology solution businesses. More than 300+ DKG technologists and subject matter experts are engineering tomorrow’s breakthroughs in surface management, data analytics, automation, and other leading-edge technologies.
We formed AST to help aviators tackle one of their long-standing challenges – reducing the risks and improving the efficiencies associated with using and managing the runway surfaces at the heart of aviation.
Our approach at AST is to turn guesswork into knowledge about actual deceleration and surface conditions. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished. Leveraging DKG’s development teams and academia, AST has built the world’s first and only braking action measurement system using live data from landing aircraft.
We invite you to learn more about Dillon Kane Group and our plans for AST. We look forward to sharing our vision with you. Visit the Dillon Kane Website to learn more.