Tuesday, October 30, 2012

FedEx donates Boeing 727 to Fox Valley Technical College: Plane to be key prop at new public safety training facility

 

 GREENVILLE — Construction won’t begin until spring on the new Fox Valley Technical College public safety training center but a significant private donation announced today will add realism to training of emergency personnel. 

 FedEx Corp. is donating a Boeing 727 to Fox Valley Technical College to be used for training by emergency medical, police and fire personnel at its new public safety training center being built on the south end of the airport.

“This public safety training center is an outdoor tactical training facility unlike any other that exists in the country because of all the elements being pulled together, all the various public safety personnel training that we plan to be doing there,” said FVTC President Susan May as she accepted ownership of the Boeing 727-200F aircraft from FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., today in a ceremony at the Outagamie County Regional Airport.

May said the plane will be used for training simulation exercises at the training center scheduled to open in the fall of 2014.

FVTC, a nationwide leader in many areas of public safety training, will use the prop for training to include: control and removal of disruptive passengers, managing a hostage crisis, performing search and rescue in a simulated crash or fire, and render aid to a passenger or crew member having a heart attack or other emergency.

“As we retire this 727 from our fleet, we are proud to give back to the aviation community,” said David Sutton, FedEx managing director, aircraft acquisition and sales. “The donation of this aircraft by FedEx is just one example of the many ways we support educational endeavors, reflecting the community spirit shared by all FedEx employees in the communities where we live and work.”

“This means we can train on an actual real aircraft, perfect scenarios for extrication, getting on the plane and putting out fires,” said Gary Wunsch, fire chief, Outagamie County Airport public safety.

The $32.5 million facility was the centerpiece of the $66.5 million FVTC building referendum approved by voters in an April referendum.

Story and video:    http://www.postcrescent.com

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