Posted on 01/29/2018 12:38:11 PM PST by ro_dreaming
While airport terminal architecture has a solid history of style and innovation, rarely is a proposal put forth to utterly redesign the runway. But that’s precisely the aim of Henk Hesselink, a Dutch scientist working with the Netherlands Aerospace Centre.
Dubbed the “endless runway”, Hesselink’s brainchild is a 360-degree landing strip measuring more than two miles in diameter. Since airplanes would be able to approach and take off from any direction around the proposed circle, they wouldn’t have to fight against crosswinds. And three planes would be able to take off or land at the same time.
(Excerpt) Read more at curbed.com ...
Yeah, because traffic circles in New Jersey have worked so well.
A figure 8 runway would be cool!
It does come up now and then. Yes, it would make crosswind landings a thing of the past. It would also require a helluva lot of concrete.
I guess the author failed to notice the contradiction in those two sentences.
Would require near total change out of all plane navigation systems, control tower systems, ATC personnel will need to be retrained, and lots of housing / buildings will need to be demolished in order to “upgrade” the runway.
I’m guessing this guy is not a pilot.
Not if they're in the eye of a hurricane.
Maybe they will require Fly-bye-wire A/V’s!
“Now arriving at Gate 10....Gate 11....Gate 12.....Gate 13.....Gate 10......Gate 11.....Gate 12....Gate 13....”
Taxiing maybe, but runways? They’ll have to be hiring some real jet jockeys to make that happen without flipped-over planes everywhere.
Sort of like bumper cars....
I think that's a bit much. No sense designing a system with flight paths crossing each other.
In whose universe? Would wind no longer exist simply because there is a big circle of asphalt? For precision approaches, there would still need to be a defined approach end and that entails wind patterns. Departure ends have the same problem. They could not have pilots just pick where they wanted to land/take off or collisions would be the norm.
Berlin has a circular airport.......................
How about having circular runways spin under a stationary plane and when the spinning runway reaches takeoff speed they release the plane. Makes about as much sense.
How the hell would you fly a pattern around a circular runway?
Why not make all commercial aircraft seaplanes and the airport a big lake?
Oh boy! Roundabouts for airplanes. Maybe we should also explore stacked runways?!
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