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97Â Â A P P E N D I X A Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide AIRPORT BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1. Please provide your airport's name. Please note that this information will remain confidential. We only need this information for statistical purposes, ensuring we calculate the total number of airports that respond to the survey correctly. 2. Please indicate your airport's NPIAS designation: Small airport Non-hub primary airport Nonprimary commercial service airport Reliever airport General aviation airport 3. Which incident- and emergency-related services does your airport manage under its own authority (part of the airport organization). Please choose all that apply: ARFF Medical Law Enforcement None Other (please specify) DIVERSION-RELATED AIRPORT PLANS 4. Where do your airport's diversion-related plans reside? Please choose all that apply: Airport Diversion Plan Aircraft Emergency Response Plans (e.g., Standard Operating Procedures) Airport Emergency Plan (AEP) AEP Annex Airport Training and Exercise Plan Airport EOC Plan City/County/Local Emergency Plan
98 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports DIVERSION-RELATED AIRPORT PLANS 5. Does your airport have a practical and actionable plan, SOP, or checklist to use during flight diversions? Yes No 6. What elements does your airportâs plan, SOP, or flight diversion checklist include? Notification triggers (e.g., when to call upon mutual aid network partners) Notification procedures (e.g., how to contact mutual aid network partners) Communication procedures to maintain common situational awareness among mutual aid network partners during an event (e.g., email, text, virtual dashboard) Escalation triggers (e.g., defines when an incident becomes an emergency) Coordination procedures to access resources, staff and equipment from mutual aid network partners (e.g., sharing agreements in place) Special conditions procedures (e.g., after-hours staffing procedures, aircraft/passenger surge management, prolonged event considerations) Monitoring procedures (e.g., weather, flight status, and regional/national airspace status) Other (please specify) 7. What makes your flight diversion checklist easy to use? Digital plan (laptop/smartphone accessible) Available on a smartphone app Quick reference (1-2 pages) Separate stand-alone document Easy to find (e.g., posted on a bulletin board) Easy to access (e.g., tear out sheet in binder) Business Continuity Plan (BCP)/Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) Crisis Communication Plan/Emergency Communications Plan Family Assistance Plan Hazard-Specific Plans (weather, pandemic etc.) Irregular Operations (IROPS) Plan Mutual Aid Plan My airport does not have any provisions for diversion planning Unsure Other (please specify) Specific, clear and precise instructions Bullet point format Divides complicated tasks into simple ones Grouped by role/responsibility Grouped by task Tasks ordered sequentially or by escalating factors Verified to be current/up-to-date (e.g., includes time stamp) Other (please specify)
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 99Â Â MUTUAL AID NETWORK PARTNERS DEFINITION: Mutual aid network partners are not just the agencies that your airport has formal agreements with to assist you during both emergency and non-emergency events but also are other local organizations that support your airport when its capabilities have been exceeded. 8. With the above definition in mind, who do you consider to be your public safety and government agency mutual aid network partners? With which do you share/coordinate your diversion-related plans? With which do you collaboratively train (at least annually) With which do you train specifically for diverted flights? Please choose as many as applicable. Mutual Aid Network Partner Share/Coordinate Diversion- Related Plans Regular Collaborative Training Diverted Flight Training Law Enforcement ARFF Fire Department EMS Local EM Agency/Office Local Healthcare/ Hospitals FAA FBI CBP CDC NTSB TSA ANG, USAF, or other military joint use on airport U.S. Marshals Air Marshals
100 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports Mutual Aid Network Partner Share/Coordinate Diversion- Related Plans Regular Collaborative Training Diverted Flight Training Airlines FBO/Fuelers Hangar/Aircraft Owners Concessionaires Other Airport Tenants Ground Transportation Red Cross Counselors Local Stores Local Restaurants Local Hotels Airport or Other Volunteer Group 10. Who is your airportâs main point of contact to coordinate with your mutual aid network partners during incidents and emergencies when your capabilities have been exceeded? The airportâs director or general manager acting 1:1 with all mutual aid network partners The airportâs operations manager The airportâs emergency manager The local (city, county, or local multi-county regional) EM agency The state EM agency A federal agency Donât know Other (please specify) 9. Again, with the above definition in mind, which airline, airport and local organizations do you consider to be your airportâs mutual aid network partners? With which do you share/coordinate your diversion-related plans? With which do you collaboratively train (at least annually)? With which do you train specifically for diverted flights? Please choose as many as applicable.
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 101Â Â 11. In the past 12-18 months, how often has your airport asked your mutual aid network partners to assist with incident- or emergency-related flight diversions? 1-5 times 5-10 times 10-15 times 15-20 times More than 20 times per year Unsure Other (please specify) INDUSTRY PRACTICES RELATED TO DIVERSION EVENTS 12. Does your airport implement any of these industry-recommended notification practices with your mutual aid network? Indicate all that you implement: Update and test your 24/7 mutual aid network partner contact list regularly (at least annually) Identify both primary and secondary contacts at all network partners with various communication methods identified for each (e.g., office phone number, cell phone number and email address) Establish communication protocols (e.g., email, text, dashboard, etc.) that all partners can access for sharing notifications and real-time, accurate and consistent updates throughout the event Use common definitions and acronyms following National Incident Management System (NIMS) and Incident Command Structure (ICS) during events, using common/plain language and avoiding unique codes/phrases whenever possible Test your airportâs notification system (technology) via âliveâ tests throughout the year Develop a backup plan for technology during power failures, cyber-attacks, and network overloads Unsure None of the above 13. Does your airport plan for any of these industry-recommended contingency practices that can help prevent flight diversion events from escalating? Specific aircraft-related practices (e.g., plans for wide body, international flights, non-station airline needs) Surge of passengers (Plans that delineate overflow areas) or aircraft (Plans that delineate hard stand areas, parking areas) After hours conditions (e.g., plans/agreements for on-call or late shift staffing) Additional impacts to airport facilities unrelated to the diversion, including landside impacts (e.g., plans for power outages, weather-related damages) and airside impacts (e.g., alternate plans for damaged runway) Compounded communication issues (e.g., plans for network overload or power outages) Extended delay situations (e.g., plans for preventing equipment overuse, plans) Long-term weather event National Airspace System conditions (e.g., natural disaster in one part of the country causing flight diversions) Unsure None of the above
102 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports 14. Does your airport implement any of these industry-recommended coordination practices with your mutual aid network partners? Indicate all that you implement: Meet regularly with your mutual aid network partners via meetings, workshops or training sessions Ensure the airportâs diversion-related plans are coordinated and aligned with mutual aid partner plans (e.g., regional/municipal contingency plans, mutual aid operational plans, emergency response plans, etc.) Establish, update and share a centralized list of local equipment and resources for use in flight diversion events Establish and clarify funding sources for incident- and emergency-related costs associated with diversions (e.g., food and water for stranded passengers) Identify and establish alternative or multiple service or supply vendors Conduct an after-action review with mutual aid network partners, assigning personnel with follow-up responsibilities to ensure accountability Update diversion-related plans and training based upon findings from after-action review Disseminate updated diversion-related plans both internally at your airport and to mutual aid network partners Unsure None of the above INDUSTRY PRACTICES RELATED TO SPECIFIC PARTNERS 15. Does your airport implement any of these industry-recommended coordination practices with airlines? Indicate all that you implement: Understand each airlineâs priority airport list for flight diversions Understand each airlineâs aircraft towing/gate and deplaning requirements (e.g., wide body aircraft) and available equipment on site at your airport Understand typical daily staffing availability as well as whether they use any third-party staffing vendors and how they communicate with them Establish agreements to clearly define the assistance airlines can provide to flight diversions associated with non-station airlines at your airport Establish agreements to clearly define who (airport or airline) manages passenger assistance / victimsâ assistance and what resources, supplies and staffing they will provide in various incident- and emergency-situations Establish equipment sharing agreements with airlines (e.g., air stairs for deplaning, etc.) Unsure None of the above 16. Does your airport implement any of these industry-recommended coordination practices with the following agencies and airport tenants? FAA - Establish and regularly review capacity constraints policy TSA - Establish and regularly review security procedures for stranded passengers CBP - Establish and review deplaning plans for diverted international flights VARIOUS - Establish and regularly review after-hour staffing plans with TSA, CBP and concessions Unsure None of the above
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 103Â Â DIVERTED FLIGHT EXPERIENCE 17. Has your airport recently (past 12-24 months) received a diverted flight due to either an incident or emergency that exceeded your capacity and required the use of your mutual aid network partners (e.g., emergency responders, agencies, healthcare, community groups, Red Cross, etc.) to respond? Yes No 18. This diverted flight event involved the following circumstances. Please choose as many as applicable: Poor weather conditions Multiple aircraft diversions Minor mechanical aircraft issue (e.g., oil leak, warning light) Aircraft emergency (major mechanical failure, fire) Medical emergency (e.g., heart attack) Passenger disruption on flight (e.g., security issue) Passenger deplanement into the airport (e.g., flight cancellation, extended flight delay) Safety / security issue Victim assistance Family assistance International flight After airport normal business hours Other (please specify) 19. This diverted flight event involved the following type of aircraft: Large commercial aircraft Small commuter aircraft (single engine/multi-engine piston) Corporate / private jet (turboprop) Experimental aircraft Rotorcraft Military aircraft Other (please specify)
104 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports 20. If you were to conduct an after-action report related to your recent diverted flight situation, what would you say worked well and did not work well, specifically related to coordinating with your mutual aid network partners (e.g., emergency responders, agencies, healthcare, community groups, Red Cross, etc.)? Please choose as many as applicable: Mutual Aid Network Partner Share / Coordinate Diversion- Related Plans COMMUNICATION: Early notification (advanced warning) COMMUNICATION: Contacting mutual aid network partners (correct contact information on file) COMMUNICATION: Information-sharing among mutual aid network partners (specifics / needs) COMMUNICATION: Crisis communication (if applicable) COMMUNICATION: Social media used for emergency management COMMUNICATION: Use of technology (e.g., dashboard) PLANNING: Following a practical checklist or plan PLANNING: Preparation (e.g., diversion-related training) PLANNING: Understanding the airportâs capability and capacity (e.g., staffing, facilities, resources/supplies, and equipment available for the diverted flight) INCIDENT MANAGEMENT: Understanding roles and responsibilities of each network partner (e.g., chain of command) INCIDENT MANAGEMENT: Response time from mutual aid resources OUTCOME: Adequate passenger care (e.g., facilities, equipment, resources) OUTCOME: Adequate victimâs assistance from mutual aid network partners (if applicable) Other (please specify)
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 105Â Â 21. Would you be open to sharing your good practices and lessons learned associated with diverted flights with our research team? Yes No If yes, please provide your name, airport and email address so one of our team members can contact you. Thank you! Thank you for your time. Your participation in this survey is greatly appreciated!
106 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports AIRPORT INTERVIEW QUESTIONS DIVERSION PLANNING Diversion-related Plans ⢠Stand-alone vs. comprehensive Do you use a detailed plan that includes SOPs for diverted flights? Does your plan stand alone or is it part of other plans (e.g., AEP, IROPS, BCP, etc.)? Are your diversion-related plans easy to use? Are they practical? What works and what doesnât? Do you conduct after-action reports for diversions? How is this knowledge gained integrated back into your plans? Have you updated your plans recently? ⢠Checklists o Do you have a diversion checklist or procedures? Are you willing to share these with the larger airport/stakeholder industry? ⢠Customer Care/Victims Assistance What kind of customer care do you plan for diverted passengers? What kind of victim/family assistance service do you plan for (e.g., Red Cross, counselors and other medical resources, local stores, hotels, etc.)? ⢠Capability and Capacity How many people do you have to respond to diversions? (For GA â Do you operate 24/7?) What facilities and equipment do you have to accommodate diverted flights and passengers? (Particularly deplaning and hold room capacity) What technology do you use for diversions? Do you keep a list of your capability and capacity (e.g., personnel, equipment, technology) needed for diversions? Have you planned for non-station diverted flights, particularly international flights? Have you coordinated with the CBP? How do you handle crisis communication? Does social media play a role in managing emergency response? ⢠Mutual Aid Network Partners Do you participate in a network (Regional IROPS Network? Emergency Working Group - EWR)? Do you have a 24/7 email/contact list of airport and mutual aid network? How often are your notification lists updated? Do you test the numbers for accuracy? Do you have a backup contact for each major mutual aid partner? Do you publish these numbers? Are these contacts stored and shared in an easy-to-find location? Do you have formal notification and communication procedures for diversions that work well with your network? Do you use any LOAs or MOUs with your mutual aid network to assist with diversions (emergency or incident) that you can recommend or share? Have you created a common terminology, acronyms and definitions related to diversions with your mutual aid network? Do you have an escalation process (both formal and informal) from incident to emergency? Do you have specific triggers and thresholds for activating plans and measure for this escalation process? Do you have good collaboration/partnering with emergency management / mutual aid network? What is going well? What would you improve?
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 107  Have you updated your DOT Tarmac Delay Plan from 2017 due to the impacts of the Pandemic and/or diversion events? Do you have a detailed IROPS Contingency Plan (reference Report 65 Template) that includes plans for diverted flights? Are there specific activities you plan before, during and after major disruptive/diversion events? Have your airline partners provided an update of their DOT Airline Tarmac Delay Plans from 2021? ⢠Training Do you train with your mutual aid network? How often does your (stakeholder specific) practice/train for irregular operations or emergency events? Have you conducted diversion training as part of these? Do you have training and/or exercises for diversions? Can you share these with the larger airport/stakeholder industry? ⢠Risk Does your airport have a Risk Tolerance Policy? Do you have a list of essential services for business continuity? Do you track the cost of diversions â specifically medical diversions? Any performance measurements? DIVERSION EXPERIENCE ⢠What types of diversions have you received in the last 12-18 months (gas and go, severe weather, medical emergency, flight disruption, international/CBP assistance or unknown)? ⢠Are there media accounts of the diversion (with links)? ⢠Is there other background information or reports available about the diversion? ⢠Walk us through diversions you have received (a variety of emergency, medical or incident level if possible) Notification. Discuss if or how you were notified of the diverted aircraft. How and where did you receive the notification? Do you use any specific flight tracking tools to better prepare for a diversion? Do you have a diversion tracking log? Technology. Did you use specific technology to manage diversions such as Flight Aware? Mitigation. Describe how you mitigated the diversion event. Mutual Aid Network. Who did you contact/how? Did you have any challenges reaching them? What was their response to your request? Passenger Care. How many passengers were on board? What were the needs of the passengers? (emergency, medical, basic). Did they have to deplane? Did you have the deplaning equipment needed? Did you have the room for them in your airport facilities? Did they require additional resources? Preparation. If you were not expecting this type of diversion, what would have helped you be better prepared? Commercial vs. Corporate. What are the differences between commercial and business/corporate jet diversions? Notification? Communication? Passenger needs? Mutual aid assistance? ⢠DOT Tarmac Delay Plans
108 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports What do you like about diversions at your airport? What are the biggest challenges you face in relation to diversions at your airport? ⢠. Do you use any ACRP tools related to diversions? ⢠Gaps. Have you identified any current gaps in service related to the diverted flights (e.g., deplaning equipment, international passenger processing services, after hours/extended delay considerations, basic passenger needs, etc.)? ⢠Good Practices. Do you have any recommended good practices associated with managing diversions? ⢠Lessons Learned. Do you have any lessons learned associated with managing diversions? Pros and cons. OTHER Tools
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 109  PILOT/AIRLINE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS DIVERTED FLIGHT EXPERIENCE 1. Have you recently (past 12-24 months) piloted a diverted flight due to either an incident or emergency that required the use of your Airlines mutual aid network partners (e.g., emergency responders, agencies, healthcare, community groups, Red Cross, etc.) to respond? 2. This diverted flight event involved the following type of aircraft: Large commercial aircraft Regional aircraft 3. This diverted flight event involved the following circumstances. Please choose as many as applicable: Poor weather conditions Mechanical issues/failures Medical emergency Passenger disruption Safety or other concerns OTHER 4. If you were to conduct an after-action report related to your recent diverted flight situation, what would you say worked well, specifically related to coordinating with the airport and your mutual aid network partners (e.g., emergency responders, agencies, healthcare, community groups, Red Cross, etc.)? Please choose as many as applicable: Pre-Event Planning with Airline System Operations Center (SOC or OCC) ⢠Early notification (advanced warning) ⢠Technology Tools such as Flight Aware or Custom Diversion Planning Tools ⢠Airport Capability and Capacity ⢠Gate capacity and capability ⢠Hours of operations ⢠Handler Staffing ⢠Servicing (fuel) ⢠Servicing (catering) ⢠Servicing (Lavs) ⢠Rescue Flight Options ⢠Hotels ⢠Customs ⢠Passenger rebook through airline website ⢠Gate slot for arrival to Airport X ⢠Recovery plan for arrival into Airport X ⢠Update local systems to reflect passenger volume and times update ⢠OTHER Diversion Event: Aircraft on the Ground and Coordination with Local Airport Officials ⢠Gate or Hard Stand ⢠Fuel Service ⢠Crew Times ⢠Maintenance on Site ⢠Airline Rep for customer interaction ⢠Passenger Connections ⢠Customer amenities (Water, food, lavs. Social media) ⢠Rescue Flight Support â Red Cross - other ⢠Resolve the Diversion Issue for continuation as quickly as possible or enable recovery plan
110 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports 5. Diversion Flight Decision Points: In flight aircraft or to which airport to divert. Discuss impacts ⢠Aircraft Fleet Schedule ⢠Crew Schedule ⢠Maintenance Schedule ⢠Passenger Schedules ⢠Other How does Airline X/Pilot see the associated affects of diversion decisions? 6. Would you be open to sharing your good practices and lessons learned associated with diverted flights with our research team?
Survey Questionnaire and Interview Guide 111  TECHNOLOGY FIRM INTERVIEW QUESTIONS Overview: What Are IROPS Events? Events which disrupt optimized flight schedules and negatively impact the normal flow of passengers through the air transportation system (i.e. severe weather, air traffic control (ATC) programs, airport service issues, passenger emergencies, and airline operations difficulties). The outcome includes crowded terminal spaces, distressed passengers, swamped airline passenger service agents, and other situations which will demand the attention of the airport and airline. Before Flight Diversion Events: What Is Diversion Response Planning? A deliberate and well planned /coordinated process for addressing unique passenger needs in recognition of the scale of incident/passenger requiring attention during an unplanned diversion. Planning takes place before the diversion event and is carried out on the spot through the delivery of special services during an event and after a diversion event by finding ways to continually improve the passenger recovery process. Elements of Airline/Airport Technology: Aircraft Autodocking System Automated Boarding Gates (including biometric-exit through CBP Traveler Verification Service) Baggage Handling Systems (inbound bags, dynamic carousel asgmt., first/last bag automation/data, flexibility on make- up pier/carousel) Baggage Tracking Systems Billing System Content Management System for Information Displays and enhanced content including full-motion HD video Data Exchange and Analytics Facility Infrastructure (power & network connectivity) Jet Bridge Lightning Detection / Warning System Off-site Passenger and/or Baggage Processing Ramp Control RMS Self-Bag-Drop (attended & unattended with biometric identification) Video Surveillance System (including ramp views available to airlines) Wi-Fi & Distributed Antennae System (public & non-public roadway, terminal, ramp) Wayfinding Pre-Event Questions: How does your diversion tracking tool address the following: ⢠Airlines need to know where all aircraft is diverting (not just their own flights) and selected diversion airport capability status (gates, fuel, deicing fluid, hardstands, local support infrastructure.). How does your tool manage this? ⢠Airports, CBP, and Ground Handlers need to know how many diversions are headed to them, what type of diversion, what type of aircraft, which airlines, and whether crews are likely to time- out. How does your tracking tool achieve this?
112 Managing a Flight Diversion with an Emergency Response at Small, Non-Hub, or General Aviation Airports During Diversion Event Questions: ⢠Please describe your decision-support information tool for diversions. ⢠How do multiple users (Airline, Airports, FAA, CBP, FBO, other) see real-time information which enables them to address their specific diversion event(s)? ⢠What organizations do you collaborate with to implement this diversion communication tool? ⢠How do you address the following in your tool? Diversion Recovery Planning: ⢠Where do airports/airlines use your diversion tool in After-Action Reporting and obtaining lessons learned? FBO [Fixed-Base Operator] INTERVIEW QUESTIONS Before ⢠What plans do you use to manage diversions? ⢠Does your airport share their diversion plans with you? ⢠How do you plan with your airport for diversions? Any training involved? During ⢠What equipment do you typically use to manage diversion events? ⢠How do communicate with other organizations during diversions? ⢠Do you share resources? How do you share (e.g. formal agreements, verbal, etc.)? ⢠What are challenges you experience related to diversions? ⢠How often do you (or your airport) need to ask for mutual aid to manage emergency situations? ⢠What things typically go well during diversions? ⢠What could be improved? After ⢠Are you involved in the after action reporting at your airport? ⢠What are the typical costs you incur during a diversion?
