To improve the safety of aircrafts and airport users at the Roberts International Airport, the Liberia Airport Authority (LAA) has launched a Foreign Objects Debris (FOD) Awareness initiative.
Held in the conference room of the airport over the weekend, the FOD awareness, according to the LAA management, will bring the nation’s premier airport in compliance with international best practices by educating employees about the dangers of foreign objects debris or FODs along the airstrip.
Madam Amelia Sumo Porkpah, LAA Assistant Compliance Manager, highlighted the importance of the awareness at the launch and called on airport users to prioritize the safety of their environment. She stressed that airport users are the direct producers of FODs and should therefore take the first steps to resolve the issue.
She mentioned that prior to the improvement of the runway, an Air France flight was grounded for almost two weeks when a metal FOD was ingested into the plane’s engine after it landed at the airport, further highlighting the need for education and compliance.
“This is to create the awareness that all of us, no matter who you are; all of us as airport users, it is not about title or position, but it is about safety. Whenever you have dirt, please dispose of it properly in designated trash buckets around the airport,” she furthered.
Displaying a plastic bag of FODs picked up during an awareness and clean up walk by the participants along the airside, Jamelia B. Dennis, safety Manager at the Liberia Airport Authority cautioned participants about the potential damage these small but dangerous objects have on airport safety and security. She said those objects can cause very serious damage to personnel working at the airside.
Madam Dennis used the display to rally her coworkers: “Some of these objects are not intentionally placed on the airside, but they happen. These are all things we need to be conscious of. This is awareness and we all need to keep this airport safe.”
She also called on other airport users to properly make use of airport facilities, stating that FODs including paper and plastic used on the landside could be transferred by the wind and taken to the airside and other areas where they could be dangerous to planes.
Foreign Objects Debris or FOD, according to the LAA, applies to all loose objects which are a danger to the safety and integrity of an aircraft and which, therefore, must not be left in any area to constitute a hazard.
The FOD include but are not limited to aircraft and vehicle parts, plastic and paper bags, sheets, rags, empty oil and hydraulic fuel cans, disposable mugs, broken wooden items, among others.
The awareness, which was the first of its kind at the Roberts International Airport in recent memory, brought together employees of the Human Resources Department, Technical and Safety Departments, Airport Security, Administration, Maintenance Department, Public Relations, as well as personnel of the Armed Forces of Liberia RIA Detachment.
Participants urged the LAA management to make the awareness quarterly or biannual to enforce compliance and safety at the airport, especially the airside.
