Emergency Training Made Real

A light plane and a small helicopter collided in midair at last week’s Emergency Services training session at the Griffith Airport.

The exercise, called “Ex Broken Wing” was a meticulously planned Aerodrome emergency exercise carried out by Griffith City Council at the aerodrome on Wednesday, October 25.

Designed and planned by Airport Coordinator Graham Slingsby and State Emergency Services member Michael Borg, “Exercise Broken Wing” was designed to test the response and coordination of Griffith’s emergency services personnel to an incident involving a hypothetical collision between the two aircraft.

The exercise is held bi-annually as a Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) Statutory Safety requirement.

Members from Griffith City Council, Australian Air Force Cadets (AAFC), SES and other volunteers, participated as crash victims.

“Victims” wore convincing make-up to replicate a variety of injuries lending an authenticity to the scene.

Over 100 emergency services personnel, comprising NSW Police, NSW Ambulance, Fire and Rescue NSW, NSW State Emergency Services (SES), NSW Rural Fire Service (NSWRFS) attended the exercise.

They were tested in the control and coordination aspect of their respective agency responsibilities.

Observers and umpires were on-hand to assess the overall performance of emergency services personnel, with a mass debrief held at the conclusion of the exercise.

“Exercise Broken Wing” was hugely successful and received wide accolades from all who participated in the event.

Exercises such as this provide local emergency services and Council staff with invaluable exposure to inter-operability between all emergency combat agencies, fostering better camaraderie and understanding across these organisations.

• Topics:

• Emergency Services
• Community Groups