Middle Georgia Regional Airport simulates plane crash exercise

The airport is required by law to perform this exercise every three years.

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Smoke filtered into the sky, as Bibb County Emergency crews sped to a burning bus in the middle of a runaway, simulating a downed plane at the Middle Georgia Regional Airport.

“We’re simulating a commercial service aircraft accident, with roughly 33 passengers onboard and we’re using this as an opportunity to review our airport emergency plan,” said the Middle Georgia Regional Airport, Aviation Director Doug Faour.

Aviation Director, Doug Faour says, the airport is required by law to perform this exercise every three years. He says, it also keeps first responders prepared for a disaster.

“It gives everyone an opportunity practice what they would do in a real life situation.  It helps keep us prepared in an event that we do have an emergency and it allows us to mitigate any issues in advance,” said Faour.

One of the skills he feels can always improve is communications between all emergency personnel on scene.

“We expect, fully expect to have communication challenges where we don’t have information flowing as we would like.  So, we typically find that and just over all confusion, we try and make this a confusing exercise; confusing enough to challenge the folks that are out there operating it,” said Faour.

According to Faour, this training will be successful if they find ways to improve during an emergency, because every second counts.