How do you read airport runway markings?

Question

as as airline passenger it seems likethe plane taxi's a long way at most major airports, how does the pilot interpret all of the markings on the way to the runway? Is there a way for a passenger to read them. Perhaps it will make the trip out more interesting

Answer 1

That's a longer answer than I can reasonably type out here. However, here are a few basics and a link to the FAA website with a visual guide.

Two numbers (such as 9-27) means that you are entering a runway. It is runway 9 if aircraft are taking off and landing to the east (90 degree direction) and 27 is they are taking off and landing to the west (270 degrees). If there are parallel sets of runways, they will also be labeled as "L" or "R" to distinguish them - for example 9L-27R.

Taxiways are usually labeled with simple letters, such as taxiway A or F or R.

Check out this link from the FAA for more examples and explanations:

http://www.awp.faa.gov/ops/runway_safety...