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50 The actions that should be taken by an airport that is sending aid to another airport through an airport-to-airport mutual aid program can be organized in the same three time phases as an airport that requests aidâpreparedness, pre-disaster, and post-disaster. A checklist for these activities can be found in Appendix I. Incident Preparedness Activities for All Airports The preparedness actions of an airport wishing to volunteer aid include most of the same actions that are to be taken by an airport requiring aid, with only a few additional actions that relate to a sending airport. Awareness of Available Assistance Airports should become aware of the support available through airport-to-airport mutual aid programs, preferably by being active as members or participants of such programs. Senior man- agers of the airport should make themselves aware of the program and communicate top-down support for the concept within their airport. Relationships with Local and State EOCs The airport should build a sound working relationship with the local EOC and, through it, the state EOC. Not only will this benefit the airportâs emergency management capabilities in local and regional disasters, it will also acquaint the EOCs with the existence of the airport-to-airport mutual aid program and its potential use and accompanying need for an EMAC/FEMA mission number. Relationships with the local and state emergency management agencies are essential in order for a sending airport to obtain the EMAC/FEMA mission number if interstate aid under a Presidential disaster declaration is involved. Designation of Mutual Aid Coordinator(s) at an Airport The airport general manager, CEO, or aviation director should appoint one or more managers to handle interactions with the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. Catalog of Specific Types of Equipment Used at an Airport An airport should maintain a detailed catalog of the specific types of equipment, replacement parts, and repair parts that are used. This catalog will facilitate the rapid and accurate formulation C h a p t e r 8 Procedures and Considerations for Airports Wishing to Volunteer Aid
procedures and Considerations for airports Wishing to Volunteer aid 51 of offers to render mutual aid, both for the expertise of people and for emergency loans of equip- ment or parts. Security Access Procedures for Aid Teams An airport should work with its FSD to develop and institutionalize access procedures for mutual aid teams responding to a disaster. There are many different ways in which access can be permitted and controlled, but they all depend on cooperation and agreement between the airport manager or security manager and the FSD. The ideal way to permit and control access is to include a written plan in the ASP. The range of security access procedures discovered during the interview portion of this research can be found in Appendix J. The sending airport must have its security credentials in such form as to satisfy the security access requirements of the receiving airport in order to minimize time delays at the sending and receiving end. The details of this will be dictated by the security access procedures for aid teams set by the receiving air- port and its FSD. Drilling and Exercising Airports should build airport-to-airport mutual aid programs into drills and exercises. This will enhance preparedness and will offer a chance for airport managers to become familiar with other airports. Legalities Approval for Participation An airport should keep its counsel and its ownerâs counsel aware of a potential or develop- ing need to send mutual aid. This process can be facilitated by the airportâs participation in the airport-to-airport mutual aid program in advance of any need. Authorization or Delegation Letters Although transferring control of an airport away from the airportâs manager is never wise, some airport functions may need or require a formal delegation of authority for certain incom- ing aid team members. A sending airport that receives a delegation of authority letter from a receiving airport should have it reviewed by counsel and senior management for acceptability. Reimbursement Contracts Airports should have pre-written reimbursement contracts for cases in which mutual aid expenses are not reimbursable through EMAC/FEMA, a statewide mutual aid compact, or an international treaty. Contracts will normally be one-on-one between pairs of airports. A send- ing airport that requests or is offered a contract covering reimbursement amounts and proce- dures from a receiving airport should have it reviewed by counsel and senior management for acceptability. Self-Deployment Under no circumstances should a team or individuals from an airport self-deploy. A direct invitation from a threatened or damaged airport should be referred to the airport-to-
52 airport-to-airport Mutual aid programs airport mutual aid program coordinator so that assistance can be coordinated and staged. Self-deployment can greatly complicate reimbursement, and aid teams may be turned away by law enforcement units. Pre-Disaster Activities Tracking the Evolution of a Disaster The potential sending airport should track a potential disaster, and the following tools can be useful in doing so: ⢠The airportâs own intelligence system(s), ⢠FAA systems, ⢠Local government EOC, and ⢠Alerts from the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. In addition, the airport should review the contact lists and procedures for sending mutual aid. The airport might make initial contact with the airport-to-airport mutual aid program coordinator at this time, or the coordinator might contact the airport. Pre-Deployment Activities Some pre-deployment activities could be completed early in the preparedness phase, and any pre-deployment activity can be accomplished immediately before aid is offered or even after the offer is made and accepted. However, these activities must be done before an aid team leaves its home airport. The following sections describe required activities. Clear Authorization from the Airport Director or Designee No aid team should ever leave its home airport without a clear authorization from the airport director or his or her designee. This is essential for reasons relating to liability and workersâ com- pensation insurance issues, as well as health insurance coverage. Invitation through an Airport-to-Airport Mutual Aid Program An aid team or individual must never self-deploy. Voluntary Deployment The members of an aid team must be volunteers, although they will be acting as employees of the sending airport while deployed to the receiving airport and en route. No Impact on the Operational Effectiveness of the Sending Airport The operational effectiveness of the sending airport must not be affected by the absence of the members of the aid team or equipment. Advance Identification of Appropriate Aid Team Members Some airports have organized aid teams ready in advance in order to prepare equipment, logistics plans, and pre-deployment orientation. These pre-designated teams may be general in scope (e.g., airport management, airport operations, maintenance, and electrical members) or they may be highly specialized (e.g., the two rapid engineering assessment teams based at Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport).
procedures and Considerations for airports Wishing to Volunteer aid 53 Qualifications and Training Members of the aid team must have appropriate qualifications and training for the duties that they expect to perform at the receiving airport. The leader of the aid team must be prepared to be flexible and make adjustments when confronted by conditions on the ground at the damaged airport. Team Leader Every deployed aid team should have a leader designated by the airport director or his or her designee. This leader should handle communications with the sending airport and the initial communication upon arrival at the receiving airport. The leaderâs duties would also include keeping accurate payroll and expenditure records. Self-Sustaining Capabilities The aid team should carry its food, bedding, fuel, and generators with it so as not to be depen- dent on the community around the damaged airport. SEADOG has had great success using recreational vehicles and cargo trailers for transporting such items. Financial Sufficiency Pending Eventual Reimbursement The aid team must have cash and debit cards that are sufficient for the duration of the deploy- ment. It is important to note that a severely damaged region may not have open banks or func- tioning automated teller machines (ATMs). Incident-Specific Liaison to Obtain the EMAC/FEMA Mission Number It is absolutely essential to obtain the EMAC/FEMA mission number when the response is related to a Presidential declaration of disaster under the Stafford Act, and it is generally wise for all activated aid teams to obtain a number through the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. This is a specific step taken by the airport in addition to the recommended long-term relation- ship with the local and state emergency management agencies, but ideally in the context of such a relationship. For clear step-by-step instructions for the EMAC/FEMA process that applies to interstate mutual aid program mission authorization and reimbursement procedures when there is a Presidential declaration of a disaster, see Section 4.6 of the WESTDOG manual (Appendix B to this Guidebook). Accounting Procedures for Expenditures and Equipment The team leader and members, as well as the accounting departments of the sending and receiving airports, should review the requirements for record keeping and documenting costs and expenditures. These procedures should be followed precisely throughout the deployment. Communications The team should carry equipment that can be used for internal communications, communi- cations with the sending airport, communications with the receiving airport, and communica- tions with the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. This equipment will typically include cell phones, radio telephones, satellite telephones, and electronic tablets or laptop computers. The aid team should follow communications protocols set by the airport-to-airport mutual aid pro- gram during deployment/redeployment and satisfy any requirements set by the sending airport. Specialized Repair or Replacement Equipment The team should take with it any specialized repair or replacement equipment requested by the receiving airport. Documentation should detail what is sent and should include specifica- tions as this information will be necessary for eventual reimbursement claims.
54 airport-to-airport Mutual aid programs Post-Disaster Activities Offering Aid Whom to Contact The airportâs designated coordinator should contact the coordinator or assistant coordinator of the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. A list of coordinators for 2011â2013 can be found in Appendix A. How to Volunteer Aid The basic procedure for volunteering aid is to respond to an aid request that is broadcast by the airport-to-airport mutual aid program coordinator(s). As will be described in Chapter 9, the coordinators will collate and verify incoming aid requests, seek specifics on skills and equipment needed, and send out highly specific requests for aid. Since aid will usually extend for weeks or a few months, it will be staged and sequenced to limit the duration of service of any one team and the length of its absence from the sending airport. Therefore, aid requests will usually ask for information relevant to time availability. The aid request form used by WESTDOG can be found in Appendix L. The offer to send aid should be sent in compliance with the form and media specified by the airport-to-airport mutual aid program. An airport-to-airport mutual aid program may use an aid offer form or the responses may be narrative communications. The aid offer should be as specific as possible to indicate the accuracy of the match between need and aid. Specificity is important because airport-to-airport mutual aid resources come from the operational and maintenance staff of the sending airport. Requests that result in superfluous or unneeded aid should be avoided. Specificity also allows aid of the right type to be mobilized and delivered at the earliest possible time. When in doubt, the airport that wishes to send aid should contact the airport-to-airport mutual aid program coordinator(s). Types of Aid that Can Reasonably Be Requested Equipment, repair parts, and skilled airport workers are types of aid that can reasonably be requested. The exact nature of resources will depend on the nature of a particular airport-to- airport mutual aid program. Only aviation-related aid should be requested through the airport- to-airport mutual aid program; all other types of aid should be sought through other local, state, commercial, or federal agencies. Matching of Needs to Aid Throughout the process, aid requests need to be matched to needs as precisely as possible. This requires as precise a determination of needs for equipment, parts, and people as is possible under the circumstances. Both circumstances and needs will evolve during a disaster and its aftermath. A NIMS/ICS-based emergency response at the airport will track this evolution and can generate and update well-matched aid requests. Applying for Reimbursement If complete and adequate records have been kept, applying for reimbursement will be straight- forward. The exact forms and procedures will generally be specific to an airport-to-airport mutual aid program or will be specified by one-on-one contracts between two airports. The Stafford Act reimbursements are highly formalized, and forms are available through local emer- gency management agencies. The duration of the reimbursement process is difficult to predict.
procedures and Considerations for airports Wishing to Volunteer aid 55 After Hurricane Katrina, it took airports a few months to 4 years to be reimbursed, and reim- bursements ranged from 82 to100 percent of the funds sought, with an average reimbursement of 98.4 percent. To reiterate, the primary variable in successful reimbursement is the quality of the financial records kept during the deployment. After-Action Review and Lessons Learned The airport should participate actively in an after-action review and the development of les- sons learned even if the airport-to-airport mutual aid program takes the lead. The airportâs AEP and ASP may benefit from the application of lessons learned during the use of mutual aid in a disaster.
