Major Airport Enhances Aviation Maritime Rescue with Zelim’s SWIFT

In a move to enhance emergency response for aircraft ditching incidents, one of Southeast Asia’s busiest aviation hubs, has equipped its new fleet of fast maritime rescue vessels with Zelim’s SWIFT Rapid Man Overboard Rescue Conveyor.

The airport’s emergency services division, which operates a fleet of rescue vessels, commissioned the first 40kt newbuild in September, with live drills in October confirming Zelim SWIFT’s capacity to vastly improve maritime rescue and recovery operations.

Sam Mayall, Zelim’s CEO, said: “Airports situated close to water have a responsibility to be prepared for the unthinkable. The SWIFT system presents an effective and proven solution to the challenges airports face following an aviation incident in the maritime environment.”

In the rare event of an aircraft ditching or a runway overrun, a waterborne rescue is required to recover passengers and crew.

Mayall furthered: “SWIFT’s performance in exercise drills was truly remarkable. We were able to recover a significant number of ‘casualties’ from the water in a matter of minutes, mitigating the risk of rescuer fatigue and casualty injury. We are confident that this project will lead to other partnerships with airports around the world as they look to ramp up airport safety.”

The decision to invest in the SWIFT conveyor follows an innovation challenge to identify solutions that could improve the speed and effectiveness of mass casualty recovery efforts. The undisclosed airport’s primary concern was fatigue and injury when using traditional person-in-water rescue and recovery methods, which often involve physically lifting individuals from the water.

Unlike conventional person-in-water rescue methods, SWIFT uses an innovative mechanical conveyor to lift casualties safely onboard, reducing the physical strain on rescuers and ensuring more efficient recoveries, even in high-casualty, high sea state scenarios. The rapid deployment technology can be manually or remotely operated to recover conscious and unconscious casualties in under a minute.

Zelim’s Chief Operating Officer, Stewart Gregory, said: “While emergency water landings are exceptionally rare, incidents such as the successful water landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River in 2009 highlight the importance of well-equipped and well-trained rescue teams in ensuring positive outcomes. By integrating SWIFT technology into its operations, the airport sets a new benchmark for emergency preparedness and response across the aviation sector.”

The airport is also exploring the possibility of integrating Zelim’s ZOE Intelligent Detection technology to enhance situational awareness and coordination during emergency response and maritime rescue operations.