FOD for thought
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Trawling airport runways for foreign object debris or FOD may be one of the least glamorous jobs in aviation, but it could also be life saving,” Fiji Airports Airside Operations Manager, Isaia Roko firmly says.
FOD for thought - Foreign object debris found on runways, taxiways and aprons poses a genuine risk to aircraft.
The airside operations team live by their motto ‘FOD is everyone’s responsibility’ in a bid to increase awareness at the airport and to mitigate any potential incident.
“When it comes to airports and aerodromes, safety is the number one priority and common denominator that our staff and contractors aim for and reassuringly for anyone who flies, Fiji Airports is no different.
“One has to get used to regular reminders about hazard encounters across the airport and the realisation that safety is a genuine concern across all levels of our operations and business,” Roko emphasised.
Fiji Airports’ airside operations team possess a rich myriad of skills with their role defining them as risk-management gurus, wildlife experts, plane spotters, runway and apron traffic cops and overall enforcers of regulatory obligations.
Roko explains that looking for and removing FOD is a crucial aspect of their work.
“A FOD walk is a great opportunity to bring about awareness of foreign object debris that is found in an inappropriate location that poses a significant risk to aircraft, passengers and staff who work around the terminal and airside areas.
“Safety is at the heart of everything we do here and these FOD walks bring awareness to the measures undertaken behind the scenes to ensure the safety of our people and our passengers.
“Our FOD walks compliment the daily inspections conducted by our airside operations officers and now and then, our stakeholders come together in their highvis vests to walk side by side along the aprons, taxiways and runways collecting an array of debris.
“FOD can be something as simple as a nut, bolt, coin or coffee cup and it can also be larger debris such as aircraft and pavement fragments and from vehicles moving in the area. These can cause substantial damage if ingested by an aircraft and it also poses a significant hazard to people working on the airfield, as it can be thrown at force by the jet blast of aircraft,” Roko says.
Pinktober FOD Walk
This year’s Pinktober campaign at the Nadi and Suva International Airports was extraordinarily special.
Fiji Airports staff organised a FOD walk to honour and acknowledge the work of the Fiji Cancer Society in this global breast cancer awareness campaign.
“Our recent Pinktober FOD walk around Nadi and Nausori International Airports with stakeholders was aimed at raising awareness on breast cancer for our staff as well as the safety measures we prioritise, both advocating on saving lives and we felt that it would be an appropriate way of raising funds for a worthwhile cause and to appreciate the campaign on raising awareness on breast cancer,” said Roko.
Fiji Airports and Civil Aviation Authority of Fiji (CAAF) staff and airport stakeholders turned up in numbers in different shades of pink for the pink-themed October FOD walk.
“For us at the airport, Pinktober is such a dynamic reminder that breast cancer awareness month is more than just a pink ribbon. It is about saving lives and honouring those who bravely fought and have gone before us.
“The Pinktober FOD walk is a time to reflect our organisation’s community obligations to make a difference and having the FOD walk reaffirms our commitment in the work we do and that is to save lives,” says Fiji Airports staff, Archana Lal.
October’s global pink-theme campaign is connected to the very serious issue of breast cancer and laden with stigma, the need for an open, unbiased conversation on the topic, early detection and treatment were part of the conversation at the refreshment space at the terminal.
“To have the FOD walk at a time where we can see life back at the terminal is a sign of recovery and to hear uplifting messages of hope from our Fiji Cancer Society team was the highlight of the day,” Lal says.
Close to 60 Fiji Airways staff participated in a similar runway FOD walk down from the hangar to the Airport Fire Station through Runway 02 earlier this year.
“Taking action to create a positive change is a good start for FOD awareness and it was a delight to collaborate with Fiji Airways for a runway FOD walk.
“Safety is critical at the airport and so we work together to implement initiatives to best live our safety culture.
“The runway FOD walk involved picking up and discarding of foreign objects on the runway, apron and taxiway to ensure a clean, well-kept environment for operations,” Roko stressed.
As part of an ongoing awareness campaign on FOD, Roko and his team of airside operations officers are optimistic that the recent FOD walks will create an avalanche of behavioural change around the airside and terminal.
“FOD is a serious issue and Nadi International Airport is very vigilant, but we are taking one step up with our awareness and precautionary measures in the two FOD walks we found very little FOD, and this is a testament to the ongoing work of all our airport staff, tenants, and customers in keeping our airside clean and safe.
“We have a responsibility to be meticulous in our efforts to prevent damage to any aircraft and equipment used here on the runway and we take that responsibility very seriously. The safety of our people, passengers and the general public become our responsibility too,” Roko said.
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