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Our activation procedure including contact details and forms for activation, in addition to equipment stockpile and aviation status reports can be found here.

Emergency Contact Numbers

  • Europe, Middle East & Africa

    +44 (0)23 8033 1551

  • Asia Pacific

    +65 6266 1566

  • Americas

    +1 954 983 9880

Please note that:

Response services are guaranteed ONLY for Members. Non-members are not guaranteed a response and will be required to sign a Non-member contract. Services and rates differ. Duty managers can be contacted for exercises.

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Oil Spill Response Limited Oil Spill Response Limited
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Services

Aviation Resources

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Dispersant Application and Logistical Support

Aviation resources are a vital service to enable an efficient and effective response. Available through a mixture of global and regional models, SLA aviation resources can be mobilised in support of two key areas; dispersant application and logistical support. With our very own Boeing 727's, we're able to deliver both capabilities, recognising the importance of these services as response enablers.

For many years, we achieved the capabilities using the iconic Hercules L-382 aircraft. This provision helped to differentiate OSRL as a truly global Tier 3 oil spill response provider. The Hercules remains a highly versatile and effective platform, however they are not as widely available as they once were and with significant increases in maintenance costs and demands elsewhere for the Hercules within the aviation industry, other options were investigated.

In response to the Macondo Incident in 2010, it was decided through the establishment of the Global Industry Response Group and the creation of the Oil Spill Response Joint Industry Project, that future industry requirements for aerial dispersant application should be reviewed. The industry needed to consider new aviation platforms, with a range of capabilities to support its global needs and operations for a faster response. 

A technical report published recommended a number of aircraft but the Boeing 727- 200 was highlighted as the most suitable aircraft due to its high transit speed, generous payload, extensive range, three-engine operation and configuration. 

In 2013, Oil Spill Response Ltd. (OSRL), teamed with British aeroengineering firm T2 Aviation, part of the 2Excel Aviation group, to deliver two modified ex-FedEx Boeing 727-200s, one fitted with a dispersant delivery system with a capacity of 15,000 litres, comprising internal tanks, pumps and a spray bar to deliver dispersant liquid (TERSUS system), the first time a pure jet has been used for such a purpose. The successful completion of this project in 2016 marks a global first for both the oil spill response and aviation communities alike. The TERSUS Dispersant Delivery System is the first and only aerial dispersant system to be approved for operation from a large jet aircraft.

The Boeing 727 and the TERSUS Dispersant Delivery System clearly express our vision statement to "exceed the rapidly evolving needs of Members and the associated need for broader response capabilities both in terms of geographical scope and technological span".

With two Boeing 727s, we’re able to fulfil logistical support capabilities to rapidly transport equipment globally in the event of a mobilisation.

 

Aerial Surveillance For Collection Of Key Response Information

The collection of data through surveillance, and the analysis and interpretation of that data provides timely information to the Incident Command which improves situational awareness and promotes informed decision-making.

Aerial surveillance has traditionally been the main feed of information from the field during a spill response. This 'eye in the sky' remains central to situational awareness, however as technology improves our surveillance capability is evolving to meet the ever-growing demand for timely and accurate information. Surveillance or 'close observation' provides the all-important validation of response strategy and verification of predicted outcomes.

  • Oil spill modelling is increasingly relied upon as a strategic planning tool during response and preparedness, which can help inform effective response alongside the real-time feed from surveillance.

  • In order for the incident command to make the most effective use of the data collected from surveillance and modelling outputs we must be able to 'visualise' as easily interpretable information at a glance.

  • In this way, the specialisms of surveillance, modelling and visualisation are inextricably linked as an integral part of our mission to provide resources to prepare for and respond to oil spills efficiently and effectively on a global basis.

Although dedicated regional aviation capability is provided through supplementary agreements, our Response Specialists can conduct aerial surveillance reconnaissance missions within suitable aircraft to inform all vital decision-making.

 

Satellite Imagery

We can also provide Satellite imagery through our Satellite Radar Detection Service to enhance your spill response awareness and response strategy development. Find out more here.

 

Mobilising the OSRL Boeing 727 Tersus System

Information you need to know about mobilising our jet-based aerial dispersant system.

 

Watch on youtube

 

Under The Hood

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The Boeing 727 is highly distinctive because of its three engines and a high T-Tail design. The middle engine, or engine 2, is stationed at the very rear of the fuselage and obtains air from an inlet ahead of the vertical fin through an S-shaped duct.

The aircraft has a built-in Auxiliary Power Unit (APU), which is mounted in a hole in the keel beam web in the main landing gear bay. This allows the aircraft to have power for electrical and air-conditioning and not to have the main engines running while sitting on the ground; the APU is also used to restart the engines.

To be able to use the required shorter runways the Boeing 727 has a unique wing design. With no wing-mounted engines, leading-edge devices (Krueger, or hinged, flaps on the inner wing and extendable leading edge slats out to the wingtip) and trailing-edge lift enhancement equipment (triple-slotted, aft-moving flaps) can be used on the entire wing. Together these high-lift devices produced a maximum wing lift coefficient of 3.0 (based on the flap-retracted wing area). 

The 727 is very stable at very low speeds compared to other early jets. A key feature is the aircraft’s ability to use a very short runway. The nose wheel brakes are available as an option to reduce braking distance on landing which provides reductions in braking distances of up to 150m. Another important feature is that the 727 is equipped with a retractable tail skid that is designed to protect the aircraft in the event of an over-rotation on take-off.

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Tersus system, which has been developed for the OSRL 727-2S2F(RE) aircraft, has seven tanks that hold 15,000 litres of dispersant. There are also pallets for the pump systems, which are pre-armed and recirculate the fluid so the system can begin spraying without delay. These systems can be controlled from the cockpit. Spray operations are performed at speeds of around 150 kt. and altitudes of 150 ft.

UTH - powerplant.jpgOSRL’s 727-2S2F (RE) aircraft began their working life with FedEx, equipped with the original Pratt & Whitney JT8D-9/15 engines, and were subsequently fitted with higher bypass, more efficient, JT8D-217C engines, as part of the Valsan programme. This ensures that the 727-2S2F (RE) aircraft are compliant with Stage 3 noise regulations. The modification removed the existing JT8D-9/15 on the one and three outboard positions and replaced them with the high bypass engines. The original, tail-mounted, number two engine is retained, but equipped with a new acoustic exhaust mixer and used at low power setting at takeoff and landing.

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Boeing is 100 years young this year. Yes, the aircraft manufacturer that has brought us the world famous Boeing 747, as well as a host of important local and global ‘airborne people-movers’ has reached its centenary this year.

Despite the fame of the 747 ‘Jumbo’ Jet and the more recent ‘Dreamliner’, or Boeing 787, it was the Boeing 727 that has proved to be one of the company’s biggest success stories. It was the first commercial aircraft to break the 1000-sales barrier and was designed to service smaller airports with shorter runways than had previously been used by the intercontinental Boeing 707.

With its distinctive appearance and its rakish T-shaped tail the Boeing 727 carried billions of passengers on everything from short hops to cross-country flights. It was also the first Boeing jetliner to undergo rigorous fatigue testing, the first to have completely powered flight controls, the first to use triple-slotted flaps and the first to have an auxiliary power unit (APU).  The APU was an important innovation in its own right. A small gas-turbine engine that eliminated the need for ground power, or starting equipment in the more rudimentary airports in developing countries.

Originally, Boeing had planned to sell only 250 aircraft when it first flew in 1962. However, they proved so popular (especially after the larger 727-200 model, which carried up to 189 passengers, was introduced in 1967) that a total of 1,832 were produced at the Renton, Washington plant.

Variants included a convertible passenger-cargo model with a Quick Change (QC) option — seats and galleys attached to removable pallets.

In September 1984, after a 22-year production run, the last of 1,832 727s was delivered - a 727-2S2F (RE) to Federal Express, ‘FedEx’.

The once “very risky” 727 had become one of the greatest selling commercial jets in history.