The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) has released its final report regarding the United Express/Trans States Airline runway overrun of June 16, 2010.

The report cites many findings as to the cause and contributing factors of the overrun, with only one that relates to the Ottawa International Airport. The finding pertains to the accumulation of rainwater on Runway 07/25 due to the crosswind and the design of its slope, resulting in a decline in the friction for the occurrence flight.

As widely reported last summer, the Airport Authority has been involved in a multi-year project to reconstruct all of its runways. Phase I, involving Runway 04/22, the runway that serves general aviation traffic, was completed in 2011. Phase II, involving Runway 07/25, the airport’s 8,000 foot runway, is nearly complete; total reconstruction, replacement of electrical wiring and NavCanada’s Instrument Landing System (ILS) and the addition of Runway End Safety Areas (RESAs) was completed in the summer of 2012, and runway grooving will be completed this summer. Phase III, which will involve Runway 14/32, the airport’s 10,000 foot runway, will be completed in 2014/2015. Phase II and III will exceed Transport Canada standards and bring the runways in line with both the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the United States Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).

“The Airport Authority participated in the investigative process, and we are pleased with the thoroughness of the TSB’s report”, said Mark Laroche, Airport Authority President and CEO. “The Ottawa Airport will continue to be a leader among Canadian airports with respect to airfield safety”.

OMCIAA operates Ottawa International Airport without government subsidies under an 80-year lease transfer agreement with Transport Canada. The OMCIAA’s mandate is to manage, operate and develop airport facilities and lands in support of the economic growth of the National Capital Region.