JFK Airport Installs Landing Device

<FONT SIZE="+3"><B>JFK Airport Installs Landing Device</B>

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, following extensive testing with the Federal Aviation Administration, will install a high-tech device at John F. Kennedy International Airport to protect passengers and aircraft in the event that a plane overshoots the runway.

The technology is known as a "soft arrestor" bed consisting of a foam material that slows down a plane by reforming to the plane's shape. During an FAA test, the foam bed stopped a Boeing 727-100 within about 300 feet. An FAA spokesperson said neither the aircraft nor the personnel on board during the test felt more deceleration "than on a normal landing."

The Port Authority will install up to five of the foam runway systems at all three New York airports. The initial bed at Kennedy Airport-the first in the world to be installed-will be in place later this year.