Cork airport held an emergency exercise with multiple first response agencies as part of the airport's preparedness to respond in the event of an emergency in the dark.
As part of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) requirements, emergency services must be conducted at regular intervals and reflect the operational hours of the airport, including hours of darkness.
It is also required by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) airport licencing regulations to conduct a twice yearly exercise to test its response to a major aircraft incident.
The exercise took place between 7pm and 10pm but had no impact on any commercial flight operations.
The exercise involved a scenario where a Boeing 737-800 had developed a technical issue with the plane's undercarriage hydraulic system. The aircraft's captain advised air traffic control that they suspected a significant hydraulic leak and were declaring an emergency.
Picture: Karol Kachmarsky
Cork Airport's emergency plan was initiated, while the aircraft upon landing, suffered an undercarriage collapse of the port side landing and gear causing an uncontained engine fire.
Airport fire and rescue operations began, backed by colleagues from the Cork city and county fire services, the HSE Ambulance Services and An Garda Síochana.
Chief Fire Officer at Cork Airport, Ken Roberts 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 ongoing basis."
