O P E R A T I O N S The aviation industry has always
been vulnerable to extreme weather
events. But with extreme weather
becoming far more common, the
challenges in maintaining standards
in service delivery are increasing,
leaving many asking if the industry is resilient enough to
deal with the potential future effects of climate change.
Back in 2017 Hurricane Irma and last year
Hurricane Dorian left trails of destruction and
devastation across the Caribbean and the
Bahamas that the rest of the world witnessed
in horror. But with hurricanes being one of the
most frequent natural disasters to impact this
part of the world, FBOs at these destinations
are becoming well-practiced in hurricane
planning and recovery. However, dealing
with a hurricane is still an exceptionally
challenging situation.
According to Jose Cabrera, station
manager at Signature Flight Support West
Palm Beach, Florida, the challenges for
operators start long before the hurricane
makes landfall. “Hurricane tracks are
reviewed religiously. It is common to
have multiple locations on alert, only
to have the path shift with short
notice,” he says.
Deborah Aharon, CEO at
the Provo Air Center in the
Turks and Caicos Islands was
working when Hurricane Irma hit
the Islands in 2017. She says,
“In advance of a storm, the big
concern is getting to the customer
quickly enough to remove them
from harm. Customers will often have
a wait and see attitude, hoping a storm
will change course.
“Then at the eleventh hour, they call for a
plane and expect it to be readily available, but by then
a number of things have changed. Airports may be closing
early in order to let their staff go home to make storm
preparations, commercial flights may already have canceled,
increasing the demand for charter flights.”
Cabrera agrees, “Prior to a hurricane’s arrival, there is
typically a mass exodus of private aircraft. Ramps become
very busy. Compounding the elevated amounts of flight
activity, fuel scarcity becomes a significant concern as
fuel transportation providers want to move their trucks and
drivers out of the way of the storm.”
Damage and debris
After the storm there is a whole new set of challenges
to navigate. Runways are often left in a bad way after a
hurricane has run its course. Cabrera says, “Hurricanes
leave significant amounts of Foreign Object Debris over the
runway. Due to the inherent value of runway and taxiway
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“Customers will often
have a wait and see
attitude, hoping a storm
will change course”
Deborah Aharon, CEO, Provo Air Center
infrastructure to support
hurricane relief efforts, the
expeditious removal of debris is
not only an airport priority, but likely of
strategic significance to municipalities and
even national governments.
“Lightning may cause holes in the asphalt/concrete base
and water intrusion can also be significant, especially in
low lying airports with poor drainage. This was particularly
problematic at many airports in the Bahamas following
Hurricane Dorian,” he adds.
“Fortunately, our runway doesn’t have flooding
problems,” says Aharon. “Our commercial airport does –
sections of the apron, the building and even the road to the
airport can be underwater after catastrophic rainfall. But
since our runway remains clear, as well as our ramp, we
could technically operate as soon as the rain stops.”
Unfortunately, there’s no quick fix for regularly flooded
runways as Cabera explains, “There is little that can be done
to remediate airport geography.”
Power and communications
Another issue for FBOs in the path of a hurricane is the
damage caused to power lines.
“One issue that surprised us very much was the delay in
getting power restored to our fuel farm and FBO. The power
company hastened to restore power to the airport but had
our facilities far down on their priorities list. Yet, our facility
was key for handling the relief and evacuation flights, and
Above: Impassable roads are
common after a hurricane,
so emergency plans should
include alternative
routes for access
Left: Radar image of Hurricane
Dorian captured August 2019