H626 to be outfitted with clean, safe fire suppression system

A safer fire extinguishing system will be installed in the hangar bay of Hangar 626 at the Salina Regional Airport.

The $1.52 million Clean Agent Fire Suppression system, is the first of its kind at a Kansas airport, and possibly in a multi-state region, said Pieter Miller, deputy executive director of the Salina Airport Authority.

Foam agent systems have been the standard in aircraft hangars for decades,” he said. “It’s in the plans to include (Clean Agent systems) in all new hangar construction projects at the Salina Airport.”

The new system is foamless and contains a super-cooling fire extinguishing agent, said Tim Rogers, SAA executive director.

The new fire protection system is “designed to extinguish fires quickly and effectively, while minimizing damage to the protected area,” according to a July 2023 Hangar 626 Risk Assessment report from IFP Smart Fire Solutions (IFP stands for Industrial Fire Protection).

The agent is a chemical compound that leaves no residual damage to aircraft, sensitive equipment, or the environment.

The system is activated through smoke and-or heat detection equipment. Alarms will sound to “alert occupants and authorities, and “simultaneously, the airflow is restricted to minimize oxygen supply to the fire, reducing its growth,” followed within seconds by the release of the clean agent stored in pressurized containers and discharged evenly through pipes and nozzles. The agent “interrupts the fire triangle elements (heat, fuel and oxygen)” and “effectively extinguishes the fire, preventing its spread and re-ignition. The clean agent is non-toxic and does not displace breathable air,” according to the IFP report.

The clean agent system for Hangar 626 is made possible by a $900,000 KDOT Innovative Technology Program grant. Miller wrote the grant application, and the grant was awarded to the Airport Authority on January 8, 2024.

“One of the Salina Airport Authority’s core values is to adopt new technologies that are compatible with the environment,” Rogers said.