LATAM Airlines Chile flight LA2213 sustained substantial damage when it collided with a fire truck during take-off from runway 16 at Jorge Chávez International Airport, Peru. There were no fatalities inside the plane among the six crew members and 102 passengers, but four passengers received serious and 36 passengers minor injuries. Two firefighters inside the truck sustained fatal injuries, while a third received serious injuries. Review of the flight radar track shows that the aircraft struck the fire truck at around 127 knots. The right gear collapsed and the aircraft caught fire. It was taking off for a domestic flight to Juliaca. At the time of the accident multiple fire trucks with flashing lights and sirens sounding crossed the runway in front of the accelerating aircraft. The crew rejected the take-off at high speed but was unable to avoid contact with fire truck number three, although the truck tried to turn around turning right (into direction of the aircraft). The right main gear collapsed causing the aircraft to veer right towards the right hand runway edge, coming to a stop partially off the runway about 2,500 metres down the runway. On 20 November Lima's Airport Authority reported in a written communique, that a pre-planned response time exercise was performed by the Rescue Team, in which it was to prove that a response to an emergency on the runway would not take any more than three minutes (which is ICAO standard). The exercise had been coordinated between the airport and the Air Traffic Authority (CORPAC, or Corporación Peruana de Aeropuertos y Aviación Comercial) and set to be carried out between 15:00 and 16:00 local time on 18 November. CORPAC confirmed the start time of the exercise at 15:10, the impact with the LATAM A320 happened at 15:11. The exercise was duly authorised under the current aeronautical regulations. This communique did not mention whether the vehicles were cleared to enter the runway by ATC or whether the pre-coordination with CORPAC also included that the vehicles would be cleared to enter the runway without actual tower clearance, in other words tower would halt all traffic at 15:10. On 21 November Peru's Ministry of Transport and Communication (in its role as Civil Aviation Authority) stated, that the communique by CORPAC was essentially correct, however, this communication and coordination did not mean that the trucks had been cleared to enter the active runway. The exercise was authorised, but this did not mean that during this exercise anyone was cleared to enter the runway, in particular if there was an aircraft moving on the runway. At this time there is no comment available, whether the trucks were cleared to enter the runway or not. However, the ministry confirmed the LATAM aircraft was cleared for take-off.
