COURSE OVERVIEW

• The CAP611, also recognised as the ‘AOC – Operation of Balloons’ document, set out by the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) states that: ‘once every three years, flight crew are to attend ground courses on the subjects of basic first-aid and fire safety.’
• The CAP611 also emphasizes the importance of a fire and first aid course, stating: ‘good safety management practice indicates that AOC(B) holders’ ground based personnel should undertake three yearly first-aid and fire courses. This will assist an Operator in complying with its duty of care at an unlicensed airfield (launch site) and, in the event of a serious accident whereby it is possible that the pilot may be incapacitated, it is likely that the retrieve crew would be the first to attend the scene.’
• The BS3 Training Fire and First Aid course is tailored to commercial balloon pilots in and around the Bristol area, but is also a great course for all private pilots and crew.
• Our training instructors are all qualified hot air balloon pilots, and are experienced in all aspects of fire safety and first aid. The instructors’ specialist knowledge will help you make confident and correct decisions should you find yourself in an emergency situation.

This qualification is aimed at any individuals involved in ballooning, either commercially or recreationally.

• To complete this qualification you should be 16 years of age or above.
• This course is run in the English language. Should you have any questions about the course, please call us on 0117 369 8336 or email us, and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

This course is split into two sections; first aid and fire safety.

Our instructors will start the session with first aid, educating participants on the following:

• Introduction to first aid
• Primary and secondary surveys for life-threatening injuries
• Resuscitation (theoretical and practical)
• Establish airway
• Carry out cardiopulmonary resuscitation
• Place casualties in recovery position
• Burns (hot and cold)
• Injuries to skull, spine, chest and extremities
• Internal injuries
• Bleeding (internal and external)
• Shock
• Moving of casualties
• Particular problems related to injured children and babies
• Risk and safety assessment of in-flight medical emergencies

After a short break, we’ll continue the programme and move onto fire safety, covering:

• Basic chemistry of combustion
• Characteristics of liquid propane gas
• Characteristics of a liquid propane fire and of a vapour propane fire
• Types of fire extinguishers – identification, properties and operation
• Fighting a vapour propane fire
• Use of Halon
• Professional inspection of company fire extinguishers – frequency and procedure
• Launch site requirements and topography

• During this 6-hour course, you’ll receive ongoing practical assessment and a simple test at the end of the course.
• Successful candidates will be issued with certification on completion, recognised by the CAA, which is valid for 3 years. At the end of this 3-year period, you’ll need to complete the course again to keep your qualification for a further 3 years.
• We will get in touch with you 6 months before your certificate goes out of date, giving you plenty of time to book on another one of our courses.

Our CAP611 Fire and First Aid course is offered throughout Bristol and surrounding areas, such as:

• Weston Super Mare
• Cheddar
• Clevedon
• Nailsea
• Portishead
• Avonmouth
• Keynsham
• Bath
• Pucklechurch
• Frampton Cotterell
• Thornbury
• Yate
• Chipping Sodbury

We regularly train commercial and recreational balloon pilots throughout Bristol and surrounding areas, but we are also happy to travel anywhere in the country to deliver one of our courses. We welcome international pilots and crew to come along to one of our courses.