INFORMED of the difficulties encountered by Philippine aviation authorities in removing a Xiamen Airways B37-800 that crashed at the country’s premier airport in August, a Dutch firm is offering their unique solution to address the problem of “damaged aircraft recovery.”
“The recent runway excursion [technical term for airplanes going out of the runway area] incident with Xiamen Air at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport [Naia] the country’s main airport, and the Philippines Airlines flight’s blown-out tire episode in Sibulan Airport in Dumaguete City—which both took place in August—underscored the need for the government to review its protocols and update its aircraft recovery system to ensure speedy recovery of aircraft and mitigate costs as a result of the flight delays,” the Netherlands-based Resqtec said. The firm said it is seeking to establish its footprint in the Philippines by offering a wide array of solutions to lift and move “a new generation of bigger and heavier aircraft.”
On August 16 the combined efforts of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), Manila International Airport Authority, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and Royal Cargo proved insufficient to speedily remove the damaged B737.
It took the authorities 36 hours to finally take the empty B737 shell of an airplane out of the runway before flights could resume. By then, major carriers Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and others have tallied scores of delayed flights and hundreds of angry passengers, who complained of lack of food and water.
As it turned out, Royal Cargo, a heavy-equipment operator, whose expertise is lifting 100-ton water pipes for big dam projects, had to deploy two kinds of telescopic cranes, a 500-ton and a 200-ton behemoths that took several hours simply to arrive at the crash site. It took several hours more to assemble the crane’s associated equipment.
The Senate conducted two investigations to go to the root of the problem and in the process, exposed some of the inadequacies of the country’s airport response system to such disasters.
The International Civil Aviation Organization’s (Icao) damaged-aircraft recovery manual suggested to airport operators or air carriers, to train a special group called “damaged aircraft recovery team” that can be called upon to do the job soonest. The DART team is mandated by Icao to conduct regular training abroad, supervised by experts either in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore or India.
Otherwise, the Icao advised the airport operator, who cannot invest on such expensive equipment, to make prior arrangement with those who have cranes, to train on aircraft recovery and to be available when needed.
Claiming to be an industry leader, Resqtec is offering the DOTr to invest in modern and state-of-the-art aircraft recovery kits “that can work on every type of aircraft quickly and easily.”
“The August 17 Xiamen Air incident alone prompted airport authorities to cancel hundreds of domestic and international flights and divert flights to other provinces,” said the company, adding an estimated 150,000 air travelers had been affected by the Naia runway closure.
Initial tally of losses and damages was placed at P33 million.
Resqtec claimed the latest generation of aircraft is heavier and bigger and could seriously pose a big challenge to recovery efforts. “You cannot use the old and conventional aircraft recovery equipment if you’re dealing with larger aircraft with new wing design.”
The firms said they are offering “not just equipment, but a comprehensive solution backed by technical experts to ensure quick aircraft recovery and manage risks.” As a market leader in aircraft recovery, the company is boasting 45 years of experience in the rescue industry.
It added that on request of Airbus and IATA’s Aircraft Recovery Task Force, “Resqtec developed a unique solution to lift and recover the new generation of aircraft such as the Airbus A350 and the Boeing 787 that are bigger, heavier and have a new wing design.”
“We are proud to say that this solution cuts back the time of an aircraft recovery operation by more than 50 percent. Resqtec is the only provider of complete aircraft recovery kits that offer a solution for lifting and moving an aircraft.”
The firm said since the government’s plan to modernize the airports across the country under through its “Build, Build, Build” program, “some business leaders are also encouraging the DOTr to put in place an aircraft recovery solution to manage risks and mitigate losses.