Before an airplane leaves or arrives at an airport, you may have noticed the big numbers painted on the runway. These numbers might not mean much to most people, but they're very important for pilots and air traffic controllers. These numbers are a vital part of an aircraft's flight plan. If you've ever been curious about the significance of those large numbers you see on airport runways, let's dive right in and explore the explanation without further delay!
Navigating the airport: what do those runway numbers mean?
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The fundamentals of airport runway identification
Understanding the runway numbering system requires visualizing how a compass works. The compass bearings rotate 360 degrees where 90 degrees indicates east, 180 degrees is south, 270 degrees is west, and 360 degrees is true north. Airport runways follow this convention based on the direction of an airplane's takeoff or landing. Runways are numbered between 01 and 36 and are rounded to the nearest 10 degrees, with the final zero dropped from the end (e.g., 270 degrees becomes runway 27). This numbering corresponds to the compass direction the plane is headed toward. For instance, a plane taking off on a runway pointed directly to the north will be departing from runway 36.
You may notice different numbers painted at opposite ends of the same runway. These numbers always have a difference of 18 – for example, 9 and 27 or 18 and 36. This gap represents directional opposites. The direction of aircraft takeoffs and landings changes based on the wind, so the same physical runway will be assigned 2 different numbers on either end.
The significance of lettered runways
While some airports may have only one runway, larger airports often have multiple runways. These bigger airports frequently have parallel runways facing the same direction, typically based on the prevailing wind patterns, to accommodate higher traffic volumes. In such cases, the runways have letters in addition to numbers. For instance, if there are 2 parallel runways facing west, they would be labeled 27L and 27R (for left and right). Some busier airports might have 3 parallel runways, with the center one designated as 27C.
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), one of the world's busiest airports, is unique in that it has 5 parallel runways all headed in the same 175.4-degree direction. In this case, the airport officials decided to shift the 2 westernmost runways up one number, resulting in runways 17L, 17C, 17R, 18L, and 18R. Other airports have runways pointing in several different directions. Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD), for example, has 8 runways – more than any other commercial airport. These include 2 sets of 3 parallel runways.
Mastering the pilot's runway lingo
When communicating with air traffic controllers during flights, each runway number is pronounced individually. For instance, if a plane is landing on runway 27L, it'll be conveyed as "two-seven-left." This level of precise enunciation is essential to prevent planes from accidentally using the same runway simultaneously. If you're a passenger familiar with this terminology, it also informs you of the direction you're traveling – in this case, towards the west.
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