The standardised surface descriptors, who assesses them, and what happens downstream. Deliberately not a code generator — see the note.
The surface condition descriptors are a closed vocabulary. Not a style guide, a closed list. They exist because the report has to survive transmission, translation and a flight deck under workload, and free text does not.
The aerodrome operator assesses the runway, through a trained assessor, in thirds. Not air traffic control, who report it but do not determine it. Not the flight crew, who consume it. The assessment is an aerodrome function, and where that is unclear in an aerodrome manual it is usually unclear on the airfield too.
The matrix converting a surface description into a runway condition code sits in a document outside the verified source set behind this site. Publishing a code we cannot cite to a paragraph would be exactly the failure this site argues against, so we publish the vocabulary and the process and stop.
Do not use this page for operational reporting.
Every figure on this page is cited to the paragraph it comes from. Where a value is a Recommendation rather than a Standard, the row says so. Verified against ICAO Annex 14 Volume I, with EASA CS-ADR-DSN and two national transpositions used as cross-checks.
Deciding which standard applies to your operation is the job. That is what the programme covers.
See the programmesThe full introduction to aerodrome compliance and certification — how the curriculum is structured, what certification is actually for, and how these decisions get made in practice. No card, no call.
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