Emergency planning

Considering the relentless downward march of the cost of airfares this has had an enormously positive impact on the world as we know it. Competition extends well beyond pricing to brand, service differentiation and connectivity.

Where we do stand together, however, is on the issue of emergency planning and exercises. Notwithstanding the numerous laws and regulations regarding emergency planning, cooperation is one of the most important links in Emergency planning Industry cooperation is criticalthe emergency response chain.

Heightened awareness of the public to incidents, managing resource shortages and maintaining the integrity of the network are some of the many considerations that must be given by industry participants when plans are discussed and resourced.

Over the past two years a newly constituted forum of stakeholders has been meeting to discuss common emergency issues, share information and assist each other in planning for unexpected incidents under the banner of the AAA.

The purpose of the AAAEmergency Planning Forum is to review the existing, and where appropriate consider and recommend the development of new strategies and arrangements to address the current emergency response and disaster management risks to airport operations. The Forum also engages with the AAA membership on matters of emergency exercise planning, physical in the field exercises, report-backs and related matters. The Forum focuses on emergency management holistically and not on specific organisations.

Consideration is regularly given to issues, practices and opportunities related to emergency management education, preparedness and awareness. Current and future legislation dealing with responsibilities and accountabilities is but one of the key areas where value can be added to airports, airlines and the travelling public.

Disasters come in many forms. Keeping effective track of disaster management planning, internal and external emergency response with regards to disaster management can be resource intensive. Ensuring responses are cooperative and effective is very important. Gone are the days when emergencies were dealt with by one participant having all the resources and skill to deal with the situation.

Under the considered leadership of Bob Calaby, one of the most experienced aerodrome emergency experts in Australia, a number of initiatives are currently in progress.

One of the noteworthy achievements was the delivery of an updated Aerodrome Emergency Planning Template that gives much food for thought to emergency managers as to some of the considerations they may want to give in establishing their own aerodrome emergency plans.

Emergency response is a specialised field but this should not mean that we should shy away from making a contribution where it is needed and proper to do so. Through the relationships being built right now we will be able to raise the bar on planning and execution in future.

But it is an opportunity to share lessons where the group has most of its impact. Emergency-based presentations to the Forum have included a wide range of issues from security managers and emergency planning experts of capital city airports, technology providers, airlines and regional and Defence airports.

Forty three heads of government and 61 foreign ministers attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting – almost one-third of the world’s leaders and one half of the world’s foreign ministers – arriving and departing via Perth Airport. The lessons from this, which surely rate as one of the largest live security and emergency contingency exercises in the history of Australia, can only be ignored at our peril. Members of the Forum were heavily involved in its planning and execution.

The group is also building bridges across the industry by having active participation of airlines, Airservices and others whilst actively discussing matters such as current and future regulations. Look out for the release of a number of new assistance measures from this Forum over the next few months.

The Forum is open to anyone in the industry, regardless of whether they are members of the AAA. Our next meeting will be in Darwin on 16 September 2013. In addition to the morning members-only session, the afternoon will be filled with interesting discussions about how we can work together, learn from each other and make it easier to deliver not only what regulators are expecting, but the travelling public deserve.