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ARFF Ready walkthrough

From the pump panel to the category board.

Six films at one regional airport: category 6, foam level B, two major foam tenders and a rapid intervention vehicle. The operator’s phone and the dashboard play together, chapter by chapter.

Film 2 of 6: When the category drops

TENDER 2’s pump fails its weekly test and the board drops to category 5. The alert climbs until acknowledged, the NOTAM reference is kept, and the repair brings category 6 back.

In this filmWhen the category drops

TENDER 2’s pump will not engage. The board drops to category 5, the alert climbs until answered, and every minute to restoration is kept.

Pump will not engage
Category 5, and why
Escalation
Acknowledged, NOTAM recorded
Fixed, with an after photo
Restored
A planned reduction
0:00 / 1:46

TENDER 2’s pump will not engage. The board drops to category 5, the alert climbs until answered, and every minute to restoration is kept.

  1. Pump will not engage. 07:41, the weekly pump test. TENDER 2’s pump will not engage, and S. Patel photographs the panel. Reported as critical, which takes TENDER 2 out of service straight away. The defect lands on the board with its photo.
  2. Category 5, and why. Within two minutes the board works the category out again. TENDER 2 no longer counts, so the board drops to category 5 and says why: vehicles 1 of 2. A category event opens with its cause and a timer, and supervisors are alerted in the dashboard.
  3. Escalation. 07:47. Five minutes on, nobody has acknowledged the alert. It escalates to managers. At 15 minutes it would go to administrators. Alerts escalate in the dashboard, on the timings from the rules table.
  4. Acknowledged, NOTAM recorded. 07:49. L. Nguyen acknowledges on the ARFF board, and the escalation stops. The NOTAM is raised through the airport’s own process, then its reference is recorded against the event. Escudo Aviation never drafts or sends a NOTAM. It keeps the reference, who entered it and when.
  5. Fixed, with an after photo. 08:50. The pump clutch is adjusted, and the after photo shows the gauge at test pressure. On an ARFF appliance the before and after photos sit side by side. L. Nguyen signs off the repair, and TENDER 2 is serviceable again.
  6. Restored. With TENDER 2 serviceable, the category is worked out again. Category 6 is restored and the event closes with the time. The history stays on the board. Reduced for 1 h 10 min, acknowledged in 7 minutes, NOTAM recorded. It all goes in the readiness pack.
  7. A planned reduction. Quiet hours can be planned ahead: the window, the category to meet and its NOTAM reference. During the window, category 5 is the one to meet, so no new alert is raised. Outside it, the declared category 6 applies again.

Illustrated from the real operator app and dashboard. Figures come from the ICAO default rules table; limits, items and wording are set by each organisation. Alerts appear in the dashboard. Incident, foam and crew records are entered on the dashboard. The NOTAM is raised through your own process and Escudo Aviation records its reference. Eastvale Regional Airport, its appliances and its people are invented.

Options and solutions

Everything in ARFF Ready, in one place.

Every film above uses these. Each site chooses its rules table, its appliances, its templates and its crew rule.

37 templates in the ARFF library

Appliances (8)

  • Major foam tender daily walkaround
  • Major foam tender weekly pump and monitor test
  • Major foam tender monthly test and certificate dates
  • Rapid intervention vehicle daily walkaround
  • Command and support vehicle daily walkaround
  • Annual pump service test
  • Annual vehicle performance test
  • New or returning vehicle acceptance

Foam and agents (7)

  • Foam proportioning (induction) test
  • Foam acceptance test
  • Foam concentrate sample to laboratory
  • Foam delivery receipt
  • Appliance decontamination (foam changeover)
  • Foam discharge record
  • Post-incident or post-drill replenishment

Breathing apparatus and air (6)

  • Breathing apparatus set daily check
  • Breathing apparatus after-use check
  • Breathing apparatus annual flow test
  • Cylinder periodic test
  • Breathing air quality test
  • Compressor service

Equipment (11)

  • Aviation rescue equipment monthly check
  • Hose pressure test
  • Ladder inspection and service test
  • PPE advanced inspection and cleaning
  • Gas detector bump test
  • Gas detector calibration
  • AED and medical kit check
  • Rescue tool annual service
  • Generator and lighting tower run
  • Test instrument check
  • Inshore rescue boat and flotation check

Station and response (5)

  • Fire station daily check
  • Fire station weekly check
  • Watchroom and alerting test
  • Hydrant and refill point flow test
  • Response-time verification run

Each template is copied in as a draft. Your service changes it to its own procedure and wording, enters its own limits and publishes it. Limits are never set for you.

Rules tables

  • ICAO default. Minimum water, discharge rate, complementary agent and number of appliances for categories 1 to 10, at foam levels A, B and C.
  • Australia. The CASA Part 139H rules (Manual of Standards, August 2025 compilation): performance levels A, B and C, reserves, a 15-minute coverage window and 90-day competencies, with the record types and how long each is kept. The category figures are the ICAO values, to confirm.
  • New Zealand. ICAO values, marked to confirm.
  • Papua New Guinea. ICAO values, marked to confirm.
  • Other markets. The ICAO default. If your authority’s figures differ, we set up a table with them.

You choose a table and confirm it against your own procedures.

Equipment types for the register

Each item keeps its own tests, services and moves between appliances and the store.

  • Breathing apparatus sets
  • Breathing apparatus cylinders
  • Breathing air compressor
  • Fire hose
  • Ground ladders
  • Structural and proximity PPE
  • Hydraulic rescue tools
  • Lifting bags
  • Thermal imaging cameras
  • Gas detectors
  • Portable extinguishers
  • AEDs
  • Foam test instruments
ARFF categoryEach station or site against its rules table, with what is short and why.
Category eventsReductions, changes and restorations, with the cause and the NOTAM reference.
Planned reductionsWindows entered in advance, with the category to meet.
Crew and competenciesRiding positions, sign on, the crew rule, validations and the matrix.
Foam and agentsProducts, lots, stock, reserve, tests, discharges and decontamination.
Incidents and standbysTimes, aircraft, narrative and the agent each appliance used.
DrillsResponse-time drills and test points, with alerts when one is due.
ARFF insights and the packInsights per site, the printed pack and the CSV files with a manifest.

Who it is for

Airport ARFF servicesRescue and firefighting services at regional and major airports.
Brigades covering an airportEmergency services brigades that cover an airport, airstrip or helipad.
Mine sites with airstripsMine emergency response teams that cover the site’s airstrip.
Industrial brigadesSite fire brigades that cover an airstrip or a fuel facility.

Escudo Ready records and routes: it does not certify airworthiness, issue NOTAMs or replace your procedures.

The category shown is a calculation from the records your crews enter and the rules table you confirm. Declaring the category and raising a NOTAM stay with your service. More on ARFF Ready.

Put one site on the board

Send us your daily appliance check and your rules table. We will set up a site and show you the category board working.

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