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Aviation glossary

Runway threshold

Also: threshold, displaced threshold, piano keys

Airports

Beginning of the part of a runway usable for landing, marked with white longitudinal stripes and green lights visible to aircraft on approach.

What it is

The threshold marks where a landing may begin. It is painted with a set of white stripes parallel to the centreline, often called piano keys, whose number depends on the runway's width: a 45-metre runway has twelve. Threshold lights show green to an approaching aircraft and red from the runway side, where they mark the end of the runway for aircraft moving the other way.

Sometimes the threshold is displaced, meaning it does not coincide with the physical start of the runway, for instance because of obstacles on the approach or noise restrictions. The section before it, marked with white arrows, can be used for the take-off run or for taxiing, but not for touchdown. This is why a runway's declared distances for take-off and landing can differ.

Related terms

RunwayRectangular surface at an aerodrome prepared for aircraft to take off and land, identified by its magnetic orientation. Runway designationTwo-digit number painted at each end of a runway giving its magnetic heading in tens of degrees, with L, C or R added where runways are parallel. LandingThe final phase of flight in which the aircraft crosses the runway threshold, touches down on its main gear and slows to taxi speed. ApproachThe phase of flight in which the aircraft lines up with the runway and descends along a defined path to the point where the crew decides to land or go around. ILSGround-based radio guidance system that leads an aircraft both laterally and vertically to the runway, allowing landings in very poor visibility.
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This page was last updated on October 9, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 9). Runway threshold. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold

MLA

“Runway threshold.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 9 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Runway threshold.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 9, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Runway threshold. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_glossary_runway_threshold,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Runway threshold}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-09},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-16},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-16}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/glossary/runway-threshold |title=Runway threshold |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-09 |access-date=2026-10-16 |language=en}}

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