Kerikeri Airport exercise will have simulated aircraft incident scenario today

Kaikohe St John medics tend to Kaikohe actor Willi Henley at an earlier emergency exercise at Kerikeri Airport. Another biannual Airport Emergency Plan scenario will be held at the airport again today

There’ll be smoke, injured passengers, flashing lights and sirens at Kerikeri Airport today, but it’s just part of an Airport Emergency Plan (AEP).

Volunteer actors, alongside real-life emergency services, will play out a simulated aircraft incident scenario today from 10am to 11.30am as part of a test-run of the airport’s inter-agency response to a real-life emergency.

As the owner and operator of the airport, Far North Holdings Ltd (FNHL) is responsible for running the biannual exercise.

Chief executive Andy Nock said safety was of utmost importance to the organisation and that AEP exercises - along with other safety management practices and procedures - meant the airport was as prepared as it could be for an emergency.

“This is really about testing the bigger emergency framework and ensuring our onsite airport rescue fire crew has a ready and robust response within the first three minutes of an incident occurring.

“Each emergency service will respond differently and in accordance with their individual emergency response plans. We know that it usually takes around 15 minutes for external agencies to arrive on site, so our on-site rescue fire service helps to bridge that gap before assisting as part of any ongoing inter-agency response.”

Nock forewarned any passengers turning up early for their flight on Tuesday could expect to see the scene playing out and not to be alarmed by emergency vehicles, flashing lights and mock fires. People could also expect to potentially see volunteer actors looking injured or pretending to be passengers, also acting within the terminal.

The exercise will test all aspects of the AEP and agency tactical plans/frameworks relating to a crash scenario.

Fire and Emergency group manager Wayne Martin said the biannual exercise was a fantastic opportunity for Fire and Emergency to work alongside its emergency services partners in the Far North.

“It gives us the opportunity to ensure we are prepared should an emergency incident take place, and by reflecting on the exercise we are able to see what worked well, and if there are any areas we need to focus on.”

Hato Hone St John Far North area operations manager Leigh Knightbridge said taking part in the exercise was an opportunity for the ambulance service to work alongside its emergency service colleagues to prepare for an emergency.

“This exercise provides a great opportunity for us to test and practise our emergency procedures for a large-scale critical incident,” Knightbridge said.

All Air New Zealand flights will run as normal on the day.

Air New Zealand head of regional airports Rachel Lilley said, “the safety of our people and customers will always be our top priority and exercises are a great way to embed training and practice how agencies work together in the event of an emergency.”