Communique 20 november, 2022
Regarding to the information being disseminated in various news media in direct relation to the accident that occurred recently on the Jorge Chávez International Airport, LAP reports the following:
• The maneuver performed on November 18 by the LAP Rescue Team was an exercise called Response Time. This exercise seeks to prove that aeronautical firefighters can respond to an emergency on a runway in a time no longer than 3 minutes. This exercise is stipulated in the Peruvian Aeronautical Regulation (RAP 314), one of its characteristics being the speed with which rescue units must enter the runway.
• It is important to recall that this operation was previously coordinated between the airport operator (LAP) and the Air Traffic Authority (CORPAC), as on previous occasions. In this case, coordination started on November 17 and CORPAC proposed to carry out the exercise between 15:00 and 16:00 hours the following day.
• On November 18, during the morning and until the beginning of the exercise, the firefighting team made all the necessary arrangements to execute the maneuver. Control Tower (CORPAC) confirmed the start time 15:10, it being the time fixed for the beginning of the maneuver, and the impact with the LATAM aircraft occurred at 15:11.
• From LAP, we highlight the work of our aeronautical firefighters, who carried out the exercise duly authorized and under the current aeronautical regulation.
• We will continue to collaborate with the authorities in charge to ensure that the relevant investigations are carried out in order to clarify the facts.