Ever get concerned when you see black smoke rising in the sky from the area near Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport? Most days it's just fire training and you may see more of that black smoke now that the airport has reopened the Fire Training Research Center.
Thanks to a $29 million reinvestment, the center is capable of recreating crash scenes as well as networking with experts from around the world in all aspects of aviation safety.
On Wednesday, firefighters demonstrated how they would handle a real-time fire disaster as flames engulfed the facility's Airbus 380 mock-up.
PHOTOS: D/FW Airport Fire Training Facility
The FTRC's new training areas include the Airbus mock-up and fuel spill burn area as well as a liquid hydrocarbon pit that will allow firefighters to train with flames and heat similar to jet fuel.
The training facility also features a new two-story training control room and briefing shelter as well as training classrooms.
An updated curriculum will also be offered, which is based on actual incidents that have occurred at DFW Airport and other airports around the world.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
The FTRC offers real world training to thousands of firefighters worldwide. Since it opened in 1995 more than 15,000 students from 29 states and 24 countries have come to DFW Airport for training on aircraft and structural fire suppression, incident management, aircraft rescue and firefighting and emergency vehicle operations.
More: DFW International Airport Fire Training Research Center on Facebook
