HEMS/SAR
By: Mandy Langfield, Editor - AirMed&Rescue
Featured in Issue 94
Firefighting on a helipad that is 100-feet in the air is a challenge. Foam fire protection is, however, one of ways in which helipads can be defended. compressed air foam systems (CAFS) are fire suppression units that inject compressed air into a foam solution in order to generate a foam that has a tighter and denser bubble structure than water with a standard foam solution. The bubble structure means that the foam can adhere to horizontal and vertical surfaces, while being more effective at tackling the fire as it can penetrate the flames deeper.
According to Burner Fire Control, which manufactures self-contained custom fire suppression equipment to customers’ specifications, the design criteria for CAFS are based on the size of the helicopter(s) using the deck. The company explained in more detail: “International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Section 6.83 states that it is considered essential that firefighting agents are able to be applied to any part of an elevated heliport irrespective of wind direction. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) specifically call out the need for multiple redundant equipment as they state a helicopter accident, which results in a full spillage with wreckage and or fire and smoke, has the capability to render some of the equipment inventory unusable or preclude the use of some passenger escape routes. CAP437, similar to ICAO, states that the operational objective should be to ensure that the system is able to control a helideck fire associated with a crashed helicopter during a range of weather conditions. Section 2.2 states that if a fixed system is in place, consideration should be given to the loss of downwind foam monitors either due to limiting weather conditions or a crash situation. ICAO also states that areas of a helideck and its appendages that may, for any reason, be otherwise inaccessible to fixed monitor systems, it is necessary to provide additional hand-controlled foam branch pipes.”
In 2016, Shell Aviation conducted an audit on 4 major Shell Pipeline (SPLC) Offshore Platforms located in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Two critical upgrade projects were commissioned between Shell Aviation, Shell Engineering, SPLC, and their contracting partners (Bay Offshore, OMC, Shamrock, Audubon Engineering, and Burner Fire Control) for on-time completion - learn more about this Heliport Fire Suppression Equipment