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The article presents an innovative method that was verified in the field. It is aimed to improve the load bearing capacity of airfield pavements, which are one of the elements of the flight safety system. Airfield pavements protect the runway in case when the aircraft is taxiing beyond the runway. Moreover, they are also used to perform starting and landing operations of military aircraft. Due to this, they need to have an adequate load bearing capacity that ensures the safety of performing aircraft flights. Airports cannot afford to be shut down for a long time; thus, it is essential to look for efficient and fast solutions that could improve the load bearing capacity of airfield pavements. The authors suggested to apply geogrid immersed in natural airfield pavement.

The NO-17-A205:2017 “Airfield maintenance in winter. Use of de-icers. Requirements and tests” Military Standard is applicable at Polish Armed Forces airports in the process of winter maintenance of airport pavements, both in the process of supplying airports with de-icing agents based on acetates and formates, as in testing, acceptance and control of de-icing agents based on formates, acetates and urea. After the expiration date of product, the tests specified in NO-17-A205:2017 shall be repeated. Purpose of the research is to determine physico-chemical properties changes of de-icing agents applied on artificial airfield pavements, after its expiration dates. The results of research on physical and chemical parameters of de-icing agents obtained at the stage of delivery and after its expiration dates have been given. The tests included determination of appearance, density, refractive index and pH value measurement, as well as checking the freezing point temperature and, in the case of deicing agents in form of granulate, checking the granules size distribution. The requirements and test methods for deicing agents in accordance with NO-17-A205:2017 are also presented. In case of parameters changes, recommendations regarding further use of these agents shall be made. Positive tests results shall be the basis for extending the shelf life of de-icing products for the next winter season.

The natural airport pavement is formed by an adequate preparation of the ground. It should be adapted or constructed in such a way as to minimize the risk to aircraft in the event of an airplane running off the runway. Research indicates that a significant part of natural airport surfaces in Poland do not meet the requirements for load capacity and require reinforcement. The article presents methodology for reinforcing soils, describes the methods of testing the capacity of natural airport pavements and presents the results of research on the natural airport pavement, in reference to the construction with a cellular geosynthetic (geocell).

The anti-skid properties of airfield pavements are one of the crucial factors impacting air traffic safety within the ground manoeuvring area. These values are evaluated directly through an analysis of the pavement macro- and microstructure, based on the friction coefficient measurement. The friction coefficient is a ratio between the pressure force of the wheel on the pavement and the friction force generated on their contact surface. Currently there are numerous devices for continuous measurement of the friction coefficient (Continuous Friction-Measuring Equipment - CFME), which in terms of their basic principle of operation, do not differ significantly from each other. CFME measure the pressure force exerted by the measuring wheel on the pavement and the friction forces on the wheel-pavement contact surface. The ratio of these two values is the friction coefficient. Apart from the similarities, these devices also exhibit difference, important in terms of the obtained values. The differences in the type and size of the used measuring tyre, value of wheel skid relative to the pavement or the pressure in the tyre should be mentioned. The results obtained from the measurements taken with the devices might differ by up to several ten percent, therefore they should not be compared, as well as referenced to the same requirements. At the same time, each of the devices enables the determination of anti-skid conditions of the pavement relative to the requirements set out for a given device type, which allows for the classification of the pavement in this regard. Taking classification into account, it is possible to compare the results obtained from various measuring devices. The article presents an overview of the instruments used for continuous friction measurement on airfield pavements, at the same time discussing the ones used on Polish roads. The authors emphasize the requirements for pavements in terms of roughness, taking into account the type of the used device. Moreover, it presents the test procedure for device with no previously determined requirements, but a need to introduce them to the market.

The article describes natural airport pavements in the aspect of performing air operations. Due to the fact that airfield functional elements are not always located on ground of sufficient bearing capacity, it is necessary to use treatments that increase the strength of weak soils. Various reinforcement technologies are available on today's market, and choosing the right method is not simple and depends on many factors, including the final effect we want to achieve after improvement, availability of technology or economic reasons. The article presents a proposal to strengthen the natural airfield pavements using geogrids (cellular geosynthetics). The influence of the applied technology on the improvement of the natural airfield pavemen at one of the airport facilities is described. The results of field tests including geotechnical wells, DPL and DCP probing as well as static plate load tests (VSS and load tests performed with high weight deflectometer (HWD), were analyzed.

The age of currently operated concrete airfield pavements in Poland exceeds 30 years operation period many times. Such a long working life of airfield pavements forced to search for the efficient and fast technologies of their reconstruction. The article described in detail the technologies of fast reconstruction of airfield concrete slabs using prefabricated slabs. The addressed technology guarantees the reconstruction and even the improvement of the condition of loadbearing capacity of mentioned airfield slabs which was confirmed during laboratory tests, field tests and practically verified in the real operation in the International Airport Kraków-Balice.