ACRP Report 171:
Establishing a Coordinated Local Family Assistance Program for Airports

Toolkit and Supplemental Materials

ACRP Project 06-03 “Establishing a Coordinated Local Family Assistance Program for Airports” resulted in the creation of job aids to help airports develop and implement aviation disaster family assistance plans. Support materials include customizable checklists and forms;  schematics for the Passenger Gathering Area and Friends and Relatives Center; informational brochures for survivors and families; and instructions and sample scripts for conducting briefings. Also included are training courses that provide an overview of the guidebook content and basic guidance on effective, compassionate communication with survivors and affected friends and relatives; trainings are designed to be self-paced or facilitator-led. Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program (HSEEP) compliant materials are included that can be used for airport tabletop, functional and full-scale exercises. The toolkit materials can help any size airport and their stakeholders plan for and respond to the demands of family and survivor assistance following an aviation disaster.

The toolkit products are described in detail below.

Toolkit Files

Click on each title to download all files for that category. Due to the number of files, they are available as .zip files.

Family Assistance Program Support Materials
The guidebook is accompanied by job aids including checklists, forms, and schematics that airports can customize and use to support their Family Assistance Program.  Most of the files are provided in a customizable format allowing the airport to make changes.  More information on these files, including a description and overview of each document, can be found in Appendix 3: Planning Aids, Forms, and Checklists of the guidebook.  (Zip 5.9MB)



Guidebook Overview Course
The overview course has been developed to help the user to understand how best to use and navigate the guidebook, and the key topics addressed in each chapter. The course should take approximately 20 minutes to complete online.   

The materials are being provided in Adobe Flash ® and HTML5 for online delivery.



Crisis Communications Overview Family and Survivor Support Course
This course is a primer for conducting initial interactions with families, friends and survivors affected by an aviation disaster. It is appropriate for all airport personnel. It addresses common reactions, emotions and behaviors of individuals in crisis; the fundamental concerns of families and survivors; techniques for establishing trust and rapport; cultural sensitivity; and what words and phrases are most helpful to use. The course should take approximately 30 minutes to complete online but may take longer if provided in person. (Zip 47.8 MB)

The materials are being provided in Adobe Flash ® and HTML5 for online delivery and in PowerPoint ® form for classroom delivery. Airports should use the delivery method that works best for their personnel.



Exercise Materials
Supporting the guidebook are templates for conducting tabletop (TTX), functional (FE) and full-scale (FSE) exercises, including family assistance injects for Master Scenario Events Lists (MSELs).  All documents and presentations created to support the guidebook have been designed to make them fully customizable to the airport’s needs. Exercise objectives can be used as written or as a starting point from which airports can develop objectives that meet their specific needs.  Presentations and documents are in template form only and should be updated to include actual exercise information. (Zip 8.4MB)



Case Study Video
The video includes firsthand accounts of how airports provided family assistance following an aviation disaster and lessons they learned during the operations.  The video also includes the voices of aviation disaster survivors and family members.  The video can be used to help airports launch their Family Assistance Program planning efforts, for stakeholder meetings, or for staff training and awareness.


IMPORTANT NOTE REGARDING TERMINOLOGY OF VIDEO: During the taping of the video participants were asked to share their personal experience in providing family assistance services following an aviation disaster.  The participants were not provided with a script and spoke directly from their experience.  In describing the Friends and Relatives Center (FRC) established at their airports, many of the participants instead used the term “Family Assistance Center” (FAC). Viewers should understand that in the video any reference to a “family assistance center” actually refers to the airport’s Friends and Relatives Center, an initial gathering area for individuals who believe their loved ones may have been on board the affected flight.










ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This work was sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It was conducted through the
Airport Cooperative Research Program, which is administered by the Transportation Research
Board (TRB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Permission to reproduce any copyrighted material included herein was obtained by the contractor.