Handling more than 70 million passengers last year, Hong Kong is home to one of the world's busiest airports.
To ensure Hong Kong International Airport's smooth operation, it has top-grade crisis management systems.
Launched early this year by the Airport Authority, the Mobile Liaison Centre has boosted the airport's emergency response capability.
The $6.7 million vehicle serves as an on-site co-ordination centre for emergency services personnel at an accident scene.
It is outfitted with advanced equipment, like external laser cameras which can rise up to 2.5 metres and rotate 360 degrees to capture an accident scene and surveillance images. The footage is shown instantly on screens inside the vehicle.
There are two high-intensity floodlights on the roof which rise up to 2.5 metres and illuminate distances of up to 25 metres.
Crisis communication
Airport Authority Airfield General Manager Steven Yiu said airline representatives, aircraft maintenance, ground service and security staff, plus Airport Authority and Police officers, meet at the vehicle when an emergency occurs.
"We report the on-site recovery and rescue progress to the Airport Emergency Centre."
The vehicle is divided into two main sections - the conference and workstation areas.
The conference area can accommodate up to 15 people. There are nine display screens for video conferencing and viewing newscasts. One of them is a touchscreen monitor.
Mr Yiu said images of the airport have been digitised and can be sent to different units.
The workstation area provides support to the conference zone. Its advanced equipment facilitates communication by instantly transmitting images and messages to different parties.
Disaster deployment
The new vehicle has been officially dispatched once so far, when a plane slid off a runway in May.
The mobile centre replaced the old command car used since the airport's opening.
Mr Yiu said: "The old command car had many constraints. Technology from 20 years ago lagged far behind what is on offer today. The old car used fax machines.
"The new vehicle's biggest improvement is in the use of digital communications equipment."
Regular checks and repairs are conducted to ensure its maintenance.
"We switch all of its electronic devices on in weekly test drives to ensure they are functioning properly.
"We hope the mobile centre can perform well and facilitate rescues when emergencies happen."
Mobile refreshment
The authority also launched the Mobile Drinking Water Supply Truck in October to improve the working environment of the 10,000 staff working on the airport's tarmac.
The truck operates from 9am to 5.30pm daily, providing hot and cold drinking water to staff working at different locations.
The service also encourages staff to adopt environmentally friendly habits like bringing their own water containers to reduce the amount of bottled water distributed to them.
The authority will continue collecting feedback from its staff to review the service.
