Fire and Rescue, NSW Ambulance and Oxley Police, State Emergency Service, NSW Rural Fire Service and council staff had to coordinate action at the scene.

Fortunately, no one was injured and there was no damage, as it was only a training run for local services to work on their coordination should a real emergency occur.

The training scenario – dubbed Operation Seashell – was part of a Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) requirement for the Tamworth Regional Airport.

Airport management consultant Michael Dubois said the exercise was aimed to help emergency services to better coordinate their activity in an airport situation.

“The coordination of it gets a little bit more difficult in the airport,” Mr Dubois said.

“You’ve got more restricted areas and there are other parties involved.”

In this scenario, a BAE college aircraft inadvertently taxied into the wing of a dash 8, causing a a large fuel spill.

Fire and Rescue were first on the scene to pour retardant on the fuel spill and make the site safe for further services to enter. 

Police manned the site’s command centre while paramedics removed people from the emergency scene.

Mr Dubois was happy with how the services joined together in their response to the scenario and said an exercise like this was a learning experience for all parties involved.

EMERGENCY response crews will undertake training in Tamworth today, simulating an aircraft fuel leak.

The exercise is undertaken as part of Civil Aviation and Safety Authority requirements. It is carried out in the field every two years with the alternating year completed as a desktop exercise.

Airport consultant Michael Dubois is the exercise director and is expected to speak with media at the end of the exercise at about 11.30am.