Honeywell Launches Surf-A System to Improve Runway Safety

Honeywell Aerospace has introduced Surface Intelligence Awareness (Surf-A), a new system aimed at improving runway safety. This solution is designed to alert pilots to potential risks associated with runway incursions, excursions, and surface-related issues, as shared in their press release.

Recently, Honeywell conducted demonstrations of the Surf-A system during flights between Seattle and Yakima, Washington, using a Boeing 757 test aircraft. These tests are part of the process to secure certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and to prepare the software for market release within the next 12 to 18 months.

The Surf-A system uses GPS and Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) data to monitor runway traffic and provide audio alerts to pilots if their aircraft is on a trajectory that could result in a collision within the next 30 seconds. The system offers four different alerts: "traffic on final," "traffic behind," "traffic on runway," and "traffic crossing runway." Alongside these audio alerts, textual messages are displayed on the pilot’s navigation screen.

This new system builds on Honeywell's existing runway alert and advisory technologies, including the SmartRunway and SmartLanding software. These systems also use GPS data combined with geographical information to issue alerts when there is a risk of overrunning the runway or landing on an inappropriate surface. They can also warn pilots about issues such as incorrect flap settings, unstable approaches, and short runway lengths.

The Surf-A system has been in development since 2018 through partnerships with Airbus and Dassault. While Surf-A is intended for new aircraft installations, the Surf-A system will be available as a retrofit, allowing it to be installed on both new and existing aircraft.