21 April 2021
MEDIA STATEMENT
Sunshine Coast Airport’s emergency response put to the test in multi-agency exercise
Emergency services and Sunshine Coast Airport staff were today put to the test, with a multi-agency field exercise simulating an emergency scenario.
The scenario saw an arriving aircraft over-run the runway tarmac, experiencing a fuel leak and requiring passengers to be evacuated.
The aircraft fuselage was represented by a bus, with volunteers playing the role of injured and distressed passengers.
Sunshine Coast Airport’s Head of Corporate Relations, Ayllie White, said the exercise helps airport staff and emergency services hone their experience and knowledge should they ever need it in a real-life airport emergency.
“Today’s exercise gave us the opportunity to practice a multi-agency response to an airport based emergency on our new airfield, and we had more than 50 participants and observers involved,” Ms White said.
“Safety is always our number one priority in aviation and we have an excellent track record but at the same time it is important we are as prepared as we can be in the unlikely event that we do have to respond to a major incident.
“It is also invaluable to work with the emergency services, so it is clear how the various agencies work together on the initial incident response and the longer term recovery.”
“Today’s field exercise is part of our overarching emergency management preparation and is carried out every two years,” she said.
“By testing our airport emergency plan in conjunction with the emergency services we can fine-tune our plans and practice skills that hopefully won’t ever be needed.”
Today’s exercise involved the Airservices’ Aviation Rescue Fire Fighting Services, Queensland Police, Queensland Ambulance and Queensland Fire and Emergency.
ENDS
