Cork Airport fight flames safely

Flames illuminated the night sky at Cork Airport this week as multiple first response agencies carried out an emergency exercise.

A Category 7 Airport, Cork Airport held the exercise as part of its on-going efforts to be prepared for night time emergencies. As part of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) requirements, emergency exercises must be conducted at regular intervals.

The exercise involved a scenario where a Boeing 737-800 aircraft had developed a technical issue with its undercarriage hydraulic system while on approach to Cork Airport. The aircraft’s captain advised air traffic control that they suspected a significant hydraulic leak and were declaring an emergency.

As part of the exercise, the aircraft landed on Runway 16 suffering a simulated undercarriage collapse of the port side landing gear and suffered an uncontained engine fire. It came to a full stop on the runway and an evacuation commenced under the control of the captain and crew.

Fire and rescue operations were then commenced by Cork Airport's Police and Fire Service who were subsequently joined by their colleagues in the Cork City and County Fire Services, the HSE Ambulance Service and An Garda Síochana.

Commenting on the exercise, Ken Roberts, Chief Fire Officer at Cork Airport, said: “We carry out exercises to test contingency plans and the co-ordination of the response to a major incident on a regular basis with key stakeholders.

“This exercise is one of a number of routine exercises within our Business Continuity Exercise Programme at Cork Airport, organised to test our response and that of the emergency services and other partners with our crews. I am deeply appreciative of the inter-agency response and co-operation we enjoy on an on-going basis.”