Costa Rica News – For anyone that was bored and knew about this you might have been able to see what airport employees would do if there was an emergency on the runway.
The Juan Santamaria International Airport is Costa Rica’s primary airport. It’s located in Alajuela, just outside the capital, San Jose. They staged a mock air drill, in compliance with international regulations.
The company that manages the airport, AERIS, made a statement that the drill is meant to comply with the International Civil Aviation Organization and the Local General Directorate of Civil Aviation.
The simulation ran for about an hour and staged a distressed aircraft on a taxiway. Emergency personnel and vehicles were used, to practice protocols and the use of both warning lights and the audible alarm system.
It simulated “an emergency alert air type 4A (stricken aircraft within the airport perimeter), which involves the activation of protocols established in the emergency plan and human deployment, as well as the movement of ambulances to and from hospitals close to the airport,” said a representative from AERIS.
They chose to do the drill in the middle of the day, when there was the least amount of air traffic. The representative also explained that these type of exercises will be done every two years.