MIAA to hold crash exercises next month

MANILA, Philippines - The Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) will conduct full-scale crash exercises early next month to meet security standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The ICAO’s Annex 14 provides for an airport emergency plan at major airports that will cover the coordination and implementation of actions to be taken in an emergency situation occurring within or in the vicinity of an airport.

The crash exercises will take place within the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) compound on Nov. 12, according to the MIAA’s media affairs division. 

The exercises will revolve around a fallen aircraft adjacent to Runway 24-06 due to engine malfunction minutes after taking off from the secondary runway 13-31.

A mock aircraft would be set on fire and airport firefighters, ambulance crews and rescue personnel and their associated equipment are expected to respond accordingly, to test their responsiveness.

The exercises will also check the efficiency of the communications system in place among those who would respond.

A tabletop exercise, a dry run of the planned crash exercises, was conducted at the MIAA boardroom last week to prepare for the full-scale simulation in November.