Two planes 'crash' in emergency exercise

A huge cloud of thick black smoke rising from the old runway at Malta International Airport yesterday caused motorists to stop and figure out what was going on.

They were not wrong in assuming that some big accident had taken place. Only, it was simulated, part of a full-scale aircraft emergency response exercise aimed at assessing the state of preparedness of all the entities that would be involved in an airport catastrophe.

The exercise, which under local and international requirements has to be held once every two years, is part of the airport's commitment to safety and security. One aim is for the people involved to maintain the required stamina and be kept on the alert.

In yesterday's exercise a passenger aircraft with 41 passengers and four crew aboard declared an emergency situation on approach due to a complete collapse of the plane's hydraulic system. The wheels were also in danger of collapse.

The control tower advised the aircraft, an Airbus 319, to circle the island to reduce its fuel load but after seven minutes the pilot declared it had to land.

In the meantime a cargo aircraft, a BAC 111, was on the taxiway awaiting instructions for take off. As the Airbus landed, it "crashed" into the BAC 111, which was carrying hazardous material.

A large fire and several other smaller ones were created to simulate the crash aftermath. The MIA's manager safety, security and administration, Mario Cuomo, said 1,000 litres of fuel were used to cause the blaze.

Five fire engines and two ambulances from the airport's fire section were on the spot in less than two minutes. Passengers were evacuated and the injured were carried out of the plane by the fire section employees.

All the airport's firemen, Mr Cuomo noted, were certified first aiders and were trained to handle people with fractures and multiple wounds.

Civil Protection Department fire engines arrived within 10 minutes but the fire had already been put out by the airport's fire section personnel. Three health division ambulances and one AFM ambulance arrived in about 20 minutes, a doctor in 25 minutes, the AFM just after.

To put out the fire, 3,000 litres of environment-friendly foam mixed with 12,000 litres of water were used. The fire cost about Lm1,000.

Mr Cuomo said that some 300 people were involved in the exercise and pointed out that in such cases one had to have enough people but not too many as this could lead to an uncontrollable situation.

The exercise, he said, was preceded by one on paper to ensure that everyone knew who to contact.

Yesterday's exercise was monitored and it will now be analysed during a debriefing session today week.

Asked whether he considered 20 minutes for the arrival of ambulances from St Luke's Hospital to be a good response time, Mr Cuomo said he did, taking into consideration the traffic and road situation. He pointed out that minor injuries were treated on the spot by personnel from the airport's fire section.

MIA's Aircraft Accident Emergency Committee coordinated the exercise in conjunction with all other MIA plc divisions. Apart from the CPD, AFM, the Department of Health and its ambulance and paramedics section, other entities involved were Malta Air Traffic Services, the police, the St John Ambulance Brigade, the Red Cross Society, Air Malta and Med-Avia.

MIA regularly conducts emergency exercises using various scenarios that might occur at an airport such as bomb threats, hijacks and the spillage of hazardous material.