Budapest Airport creates new service helping everybody

A new activity will be added to the responsibilities of the operator of Ferenc Liszt International Airport from the fall; Budapest Airport will establish its own industrial fire service, a fire brigade of its own staff with a large headcount and one of the best-equipped airport fire bases in Europe. Firefighters from disaster management are currently responsible for firefighting services at the airport, which are indispensable for the operation of the airport, but due to a change in legal provisions at the end of December, Budapest Airport will be obliged to provide its own firefighting staff from October this year. In just 9 months, the company will set up a large fire service to meet specific airport requirements, offering a competitive benefits package and a stable work environment to those who join the staff.

No airport can operate without a specialized fire service ready to perform airport rescue tasks at all times, should this ever be required. The primary role of airport firefighters is to carry out aircraft firefighting and rescue tasks, to provide a standby service (which guarantees that firefighters arrive to all points within the airport within 3 minutes of the alarm) and to maintain the fire safety of the buildings at the airport; their work is thus essential to keep air traffic flowing. Following an unexpected change in legislation last December, Budapest Airport will have to manage this task from the fall of 2023, meaning that the service will be provided by qualified firefighters joining Budapest Airport’s staff instead of disaster management, from October. Budapest Airport has started to set up the industrial fire service.

Budapest Airport will provide an excellent benefits package and all the necessary trainings for the firefighters joining the fire service, and will also welcome firefighters currently working at the airport, professionals in service at other sites and candidates with firefighter qualifications who are currently working in other types of jobs.

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Budapest Airport has already been supporting the operation of the airport fire service; the maintenance of the fire bases, the provision of equipment and the purchase of the vehicle fleet (including the latest Panther fire trucks) were already the airport operator’s responsibility. As a result, Budapest Airport already has one of the best-equipped fire services in Europe, and its firefighters are trained in the theory and practice of aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF).

The new industrial firefighting team will work under the leadership of fire chief Gábor Nagy, who has held the position of airport fire chief for seven years, and has decided to continue this work as an employee of Budapest Airport since 1 February.

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“There are a lot of firefighters in my family, so I joined as well immediately after my military service. I can say that I have spent my entire adult life as a firefighter. It is a huge motivation to be part of building the best fire service in the country,” said the commander. He added: “I can only encourage my experienced colleagues and firefighters who have been working in other fields to join us, as they can be sure that they will be able to gain specialized skills in one of the best-equipped fire services in Europe, and can do so in a unique environment.” Budapest Airport is already inviting applications for the positions of industrial firefighter and industrial fire truck driver, in view of the duration of the necessary trainings.

Source: bud.hu