Runway Rubber Removal
High-pressure water blasting to strip accumulated rubber from runway touchdown zones — restoring surface texture and keeping airfields within spec. Performed on active runways across Arizona and the Southwest.
WHAT IT IS
Why rubber removal matters
Every landing deposits a thin layer of tire rubber in the runway touchdown zones. Over thousands of operations, that rubber accumulates, fills the pavement’s surface texture, and reduces the friction aircraft depend on during landing and rollout — especially in wet conditions. Once rubber buildup crosses the thresholds set by the airport or the FAA, it has to be removed.
Falcon removes runway rubber by high-pressure water blasting — a method that strips the rubber deposits without damaging the underlying pavement or the runway markings that need to stay. Water blasting is the preferred approach for rubber removal precisely because it’s aggressive on rubber and gentle on the surface: it lifts the contaminant while preserving the grooving and texture that give the runway its friction in the first place.
We perform rubber removal on active runways, working within the operational windows and closures the airport provides. Airfields rarely have the luxury of extended shutdowns, so the work is planned around traffic — often overnight or in phased segments — with crews mobilized to move quickly and clear the runway back to operational status on schedule.
CLIENTS
Airports and general contractors
Falcon’s rubber removal work serves two kinds of clients. We work directly with airports — municipal, regional, and military airfields that need recurring rubber removal to stay within their friction and safety requirements. And we work as a subcontractor to general contractors on larger airfield rehabilitation and construction projects, where rubber removal is one scope within a broader package of pavement and marking work.
In both cases, the value is the same: a certified airfield crew that understands the security, coordination, and spec requirements of runway work — not a general pressure-washing outfit adapting to an environment it doesn’t know. Falcon has performed airfield work at Phoenix Sky Harbor, Chandler Municipal, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, and on military airfield projects including Air Force base and Marine Corps air station work.
CAPABILITIES
What we handle
STANDARDS
Built to spec — any spec
Falcon performs rubber removal to FAA standards and to the requirements set by the airport or governing agency. Just as important: we can build any project to the specification provided, even when it doesn’t follow a specific published standard. If your airport, engineer, or GC hands us a spec, we execute to it. That flexibility matters on airfield work, where requirements vary between civil, commercial, and military installations.
One clarification on scope: Falcon performs rubber removal, but we do not provide runway friction testing — that’s typically handled by a separate specialized testing firm or the airport itself. We coordinate our removal work around the friction thresholds and testing results others provide.