Air traffic - Pilots: Munich Airport particularly safe
The Munich Airport is, according to the assessment of the Pilots' Union Vereinigung Cockpit, the safest in Germany and shines with an "excellent equipment". Leipzig/Halle and the first one to be examined, Zurich Airport, followed in the places of the annual airport checks. The Swiss Pilots Association Aeropers contributed to this.
The pilots found the consistent and, until now in Germany, non-binding use of so-called "Stopbars" in Zurich particularly noteworthy. These are red light chains in the runways that lead to a start or landing strip. They are intended to prevent aircraft or other vehicles from accidentally driving onto the runway. Austria also reported positive experiences.
In the catastrophic collision of two aircraft at the beginning of the year in Tokyo-Haneda, such bars were present but defective at the time of the accident. Five people died on board a Coast Guard aircraft, while the crew and passengers of an Airbus from Japan Airlines were able to escape the fire alive.
Experts register an average of five incidents per day in the USA where aircraft or vehicles enter the runway without permission. For Europe, they estimate the number of risk incidents at two per week. With increasing air traffic, there is a need to calculate an increase. "The Civil Aviation Organization ICAO and Eurocontrol recommend the use of Stopbars," explains Cockpit Spokesperson Frank Blanken. "It is all the more incomprehensible for us that their use is not yet standard in Germany."
The pilots also want to be involved in local safety committees, which is currently not the case at Frankfurt Airport and has led to criticisms. The largest German airport lands in the middle of the 31 evaluated airports with a grade of 2.2.
Mannheim and Lübeck appear at the bottom of the report with grades of 2.9 each. Weeze and Friedrichshafen have improved through the exemplary cooperation with the Vereinigung Cockpit.
A working group of the Vereinigung Cockpit has been conducting an annual safety check on German traffic airports since 1978. For the first time, colleagues from Switzerland were involved. The basis for the investigation is a criteria catalog that includes both international regulations and sensible additional equipment from a pilot's perspective. The legal minimum requirements are not evaluated but are the responsibility of the authorities. Since all inspected airports are legally authorized, all German airports "can be considered fundamentally safe" from the VC's perspective.
Statement by the Vereinigung Cockpit
The Cockpit Association from Switzerland participated in the annual airport checks for the first time, contributing to the positive evaluations of Zurich and Leipzig/Halle airports. The use of Stopbars, which prevent vehicles from accidentally driving onto the runway, was highly appreciated in Zurich and reported positively in Austria as well. Frankfurt am Main Airport, however, falls in the middle of the assessed airports due to the absence of local safety committee involvement from pilots. Munich, Zurich, and Leipzig/Halle are considered the safest in Germany and Europe, according to aviation experts. Despite the consistent use of Stopbars being recommended by ICAO and Eurocontrol, their implementation is not standard in Germany, causing confusion among pilots.
