AIRCRAFT EMERGENCY RESPONSE

As part of its comprehensive civil aviation regulatory safety program, Transport Canada has proposed amendments to provide effective aircraft firefighting services that are in keeping with traffic levels at Canadian airports. These amendments require the highest level of firefighting standards, including on-site coverage, at Canada’s busiest airports, handling approximately 95 percent of Canadian air travellers. These proposed amendments essentially merge the existing two levels of aircraft rescue and firefighting services into one regulation.

The proposed amendments reflects Transport Canada’s ongoing commitment to aviation safety and the department’s careful assessment of the most effective and efficient method of providing emergency response services at Canadian airports. The aircraft rescue and firefighting service, should an incident, accident or fire occur, would provide the travelling public with the highest level of safety and protection, while conforming to stringent Canadian and international aviation standards and recommended practices.

The regulations are enforced by Transport Canada safety inspectors and cover issues such as hours of operation, level of protection, extinguishing agents, equipment and firefighter training.

Some of the regulatory requirements covered by the existing regulations include:

• the minimum number of vehicles and quantities of extinguishing agents, emergency equipment and the qualifications and training of personnel that must be made available by the airport operator;
• a three-minute response time for first-response vehicle(s) responding to an emergency at applicable airports;
• a minimum of 90 per cent coverage of commercial aircraft conducting regular flights, and in addition, coverage of 100 per cent of all 20-passenger aircraft.
• the presence of qualified personnel, trained according to Transport Canada standards, who are able to deliver aircraft rescue and firefighting service at the airport during operating hours;
• the annual testing of emergency services conducted, monitored and enforced to evaluate response times and confirm that the emergency services being provided adhere to the standards specified in the regulation; and
• a statistical collection program of aircraft movements and type to confirm emergency services are commensurate with the size and frequency of aircraft using the airport.

To view the aircraft rescue and firefighting regulations please visit Transport Canada’s civil aviation website at www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/Affairs/cars/Part3/Subpart3.htm.

May 2006