PASAY CITY, 3 August 2023 – The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) is set to test its readiness to respond to an aircraft crash incident during the Crash Rescue Exercise (CREX) 2023 to be held within the airside premises of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) tomorrow, August 4.
Airport Authorities of member states to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) are required to conduct bi-annually, a full-scale airport emergency exercise and a table-top exercise during the intervening year. These are done to ensure that airport authorities are attuned to the latest recommendations under the ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (ICAO-SARPS) manuals.
Apart from prescribing to the standards of the ICAO-SARPS, this year’s crash rescue exercise shall likewise assess the effectiveness of prevailing guidelines and procedures contained in the 8th edition of the MIAA Airport Emergency Plan (MIAA-AEP).
Both the ICAO-SARPS and the MIAA-AEP define lines of authority and organizational relationships between first and secondary responders and support groups and show how all actions should be coordinated during an airport emergency. These two documents likewise define responsibilities to organizations and people for carrying out specific actions in responding in an airport emergency situation. Primary responders in an in-airport emergency in NAIA are the MIAA Rescue and Firefighting and Medical units.
“This year’s exercise is another first in the history of the MIAA because we shall also simulate the management and handling of relatives of victims of the aircraft accident, something that was never done before,” said MIAA Officer-in-Charge Bryan Co.
While rated as a Category IX airport, MIAA’s current rescue and firefighting capability is Category X compliant making it ready to respond to an airport emergency involving an Airbus A380.
With the support of highly skilled fire and rescue personnel, a medical team that is well trained and experienced on aviation medicine, a fleet of modern firefighting and medical vehicles, pneumatic aircraft lifting systems and various other rescue equipment, the MIAA Emergency Services department is at par with its counterparts in the region.
Co assures that there will be no flight disruptions and normal operations will continue smoothly during the conduct of the exercise.