EMERCOM training was carried out on the Alferyevo aerodrome

On October 28 and November 5 the scheduled training of rescuers and checks of flight crews of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) were held at the MAI airfield in Alferyevo. As part of the events, single and serial cargo dropouts were performed.

The cooperation agreement between MAI and the EMERCOM was signed in December 2019. Already in March 2020, the first cargo dropout from the height of 150 meters was carried out. However, due to the outbreak of the pandemic, training had to be postponed. It was possible to relaunch it only in October-November of this year.

The training was attended by 18 people consisting of two divisions: "Centrospas" — the civil rescuers, whose main task is to conduct emergency and search and rescue operations of various types and scales in response to the consequences of man — made and natural emergencies at the Federal and international levels, and the "Leader" Center — the division of military rescuers working, as a rule, in hot zones and conducting complex emergency rescue operations. Both divisions had a big break — they didn’t train for more than 8 years. Tires from airplanes IL-96, IL-86, IL-62 were used as training loads.

The dropout happened within three hours of the Il-76TD at low altitudes: platform of 150 meters, rescuers-parachuters — from 1100 meters, after which the aircraft returned to the point of departure at the international airport of Zhukovsky. The take-off and flight of the aircraft was partially controlled by the dispatchers of the mobile control center of the MAI airfield. It is worth noting that the flight required special attention, since it was performed at non-standard average altitudes.

Within the framework of long-term cooperation, the next training of rescuers and checks of EMERCOM flight crews should take place next year. They will include dropouts not only with controlled parachutes, but also with parachutes with a round dome, which are practically uncontrolled.

MAI airfield in Alferyevo (60 years since it is under the operational management of MAI this year) is the only active airfield in Russia operated by civil educational institution, it belongs to the state airfields of Russia. It was built 120 km from Moscow in 1933 for the air defense of the Moscow military district. Several generations of engineers worked on it.