T’puram: The city airport added three new crash fire tenders that use modern technology to enhance its emergency response and fight fires efficiently. They also have undercarriage nozzles to spray water, enabling the trucks to be driven over minor fires.The addition strengthened its aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) capabilities with the induction of three state-of-the-art Panther CFT crash fire tenders from Rosenbauer. Powered by a 700HP engine, each vehicle can accelerate from 0 to 80km/h in under 30 seconds, enabling rapid response during critical situations. “Each tender is equipped with 12,500litres of water, 1,500litres of foam, and 250kg of dry chemical powder, significantly enhancing on-site firefighting readiness and operational resilience. The vehicles will have a roof throw of 90m,” said an official. “The vehicle has under-truck nozzles to protect it from ground fires, even if it is driven through minor ground fires,” the official added. The tenders are designed to be driven to the runway quicker, spread foam and deploy at vantage points when a plane makes an emergency landing, or for firefighting and rescue when an aircraft develops an emergency.
