Light aircraft incident demonstrates emergency service interoperability

At 5:08pm on Saturday evening Shropshire Fire and Rescue Services control room received a call from Sleap Airfield near Wem reporting a light aircraft experiencing difficulty with its landing gear.

Fire Control immediately dispatched 1 fire engine from Wem, 1 fire engine from Shrewsbury, a foam unit from Tweedale, a four wheel drive from Minsterley and 3 officers.

Station Manager Adam Matthews, Incident Commander at the incident, said “First attending crews gathered information whilst awaiting the attendance of all specialist appliances.

“It became apparent the plane was experiencing difficulty with its nose wheel and the rear right hand wheel.

“There was no immediate rush as the plane had plenty of fuel which enabled us to put a thorough extensive plan in place and allowed time for a complete briefing of all emergency services”.

A specialist crew from RAF Shawbury were also mobilised to the incident along with West Midlands Ambulances Hazardous Area Response Team.

Station Manager Matthews said “Thankfully the aircraft made a safe landing and all four people on board were unharmed.

“I would like to thank all crews and agencies involved. This incident was a great example of effective interoperability amongst all 3 emergency services”.

22nd April, 2013