AFOA Update

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afoa update

John Purdy, vice chairman for AFOA.

This summer’s prolonged heatwave has caused a range of problems for fire services, airports, and our local authority partners in the UK, at times stretching resources and capabilities to the limit. Fortunately, excellent liaison and the sharing of resources between fire services and airports throughout the country has ensured the worst of the situations have been dealt with successfully.

AFOA has also been busy this summer with a re-brand and the development of a new website. The committee was conscious that the previous website required improvements, not least to allow our members the ability to communicate via online forums within secure areas. This and many other new features will be available when we launch the new site in September in time for the Emergency Services Show.

We will be holding our AGM on 19 September at the Emergency Services Show in the Piazza Suite 3 from 12.30 until 16.00. If you are attending the show, please come along to the AGM and take the opportunity to network with colleagues and committee members. Please let me or Simon Petts know if you do plan to attend.

As ever there is a lot going on in our industry, in particular in relation to appliance and equipment technology, which has direct implications on the way we operate our airports and

stations. Additionally, the key issue of European Aviation Safety Agency medical standards is still to be finalised. EASA will publish a draft Notice of Proposed Amendment, and a questionnaire about the effects of implementing this, which will go to Member States and industry. EASA plan to publish the NPA in January followed by a three-month consultation.

Finally, the AFOA Annual Conference will be at the Gatwick Hilton Hotel from 15-17 January 2019. The speaker line-up and content is already looking strong and we are confident of another excellent conference. The committee is still reviewing offers from potential speakers, and we are particularly interested in case studies related to specific incidents.

As our chairman mentioned in the last issue, we are actively looking for alternative venues for 2020 and beyond. The conference is going from strength to strength and we need to be able to satisfy demand and keep pushing ourselves to provide the best experience for our members.

We are also working closely with our colleagues in America (ARFF Working Group) to finalise plans for a joint conference in 2019, details of which we will communicate as soon as its confirmed. We look forward to seeing you in September. John Purdy, vice chairman, AFOA jsp@newcastleinternational.co.uk

AFOA is currently looking for incident case studies to be presented at the association's annual conference, to be held from 15-17

January 2019.

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