Meaning of Numbers on Airport Runways

Each symbol and digit on the runway has its own unique meanings that help the pilot locate the exact direction of travel when taking off. This article explains the key facts and context behind airport runways.

Key Facts About Airport Runways

To inform pilots which runways to take off and land, airport airports around the world are numbered based on the compass bearing, according to Stantec.

The azimuth is a measurement angle in a bridge positioning system, formed between the geographic north direction and the direction of the object to be observed at an observation point in the field, or on a map. The angle can be measured by locality and calculated from 0 degrees to 360 degrees according to the clockwise direction.

By rounding the compass azimuth at one end of the runway and removing the last digit, the numbers on the runway were determined. This means that the runways will be numbered from 1 to 36.

The two ends of the runway lie on the straight line, forming a 180 degree angle with the other end, so this head is always numbered 18 difference from the number at the other end. For example, with a 9-27 runway with east-west direction, if the plane is on the runway 9, you are going east (corresponding to 90 degrees on the compass).

Almost all runways can be used in both directions, depending on the wind direction, each end of the runway can be identified separately. An aircraft taking off east on the runway 9-27 will leave at the beginning of 9th.

For major airports with parallel runways the pilots who perform flights will distinguish by the "L" for the left and "R" for the right side, which is added behind the number. If the airport has three parallel runways, the "C" - center will be added to the middle runway after the number.