Winter Time Operations and Snow Clearing
Since its opening Stockholm Arlanda has always managed to continue its operations during heavy snowfall and difficult weather. The airport administration claims to be world-leading at clearing snow from the runways. Arlanda has a policy to never close due to snowfall. Heavy snowfall can however cause delays. During heavy snowfall at least one runway stays open but in bad weather condition there may be delays even if flight operations continue at all times. Not just runways need to be cleared, aprons and aircraft parking areas need snow clearing as well. The airport has a total of 250 000 m2 to clear from snow and ice, at the same time as the aircraft continue taking off and landing. During the colder half of the year Stockholm Arlanda has about 65 seasonally hired snow removal staff. Together with permanent staff, they form a team of 100 people who provide snow removal services. Special routes are planned for sweeping teams, which clear each route at intervals of 35 to 45 minutes. The sweeping teams are directed via radio from the air traffic control tower. When snow removal is completed on each runway the surface is tested by a friction vehicle which measures friction value. The airport announces the friction value, and then it is each pilot who decides whether this value is sufficient for a landing. The friction value determines how often a runway must be ploughed and treated with anti-skid agent.
Read more about this topic: Stockholm Arlanda Airport
Famous quotes containing the words winter, time, operations, snow and/or clearing:
“My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one,
and come away.
For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;”
—Bible: Hebrew The Song of Solomon (l. II, 10–12)
“Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future,
And time future contained in time past.
If all time is eternally present
All time is unredeemable.”
—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)
“Plot, rules, nor even poetry, are not half so great beauties in tragedy or comedy as a just imitation of nature, of character, of the passions and their operations in diversified situations.”
—Horace Walpole (1717–1797)
“Like snow having second thoughts and coming back
To be wary about this, to embellish that, as though life were a party
At which work got done.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“[Panurge] spent everything in a thousand little banquets and joyous feasts open to all comers, particularly jolly companions, young lasses, and delightful wenches, and in clearing his lands, burning the big logs to sell the ashes, taking money in advance, buying dear, selling cheap, and eating his wheat in the blade.”
—François Rabelais (1494–1553)