Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting (ARFF)
Rural Metro Fire ARFF Division is nationally recognized as a leader in fire protection services. We maintain our important role in keeping our nation's airports, industrial facilities and communities safe and secure by focusing on each customer's specific safety/environmental and security standards in all aspects of operations.
As an airport is trusted by crew and passengers alike, safety and security are of utmost importance, with no room for compromise. The Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting (ARFF) Division considers the specific needs of each airport to customize a program appropriate for each unique location. It's our way of providing the best protection possible. Our ARFF personnel also can provide a variety of support enhancements, from airport driver-training programs, and site safety services to OSHA-compliant tenant training. These benefits are in addition to the customary response operations of emergency medical services, hazardous materials, and structural firefighting.
Who We Provide ARFF For
Wherever aircraft operate and a response capability is required, Rural Metro Fire delivers it as a contracted service, scaled to the standard that governs your field.
Commercial Service Airports
Full 14 CFR Part 139 ARFF coverage for certificated airports, including multiple Index C commercial fields where we carry the rescue and firefighting obligation end to end.
Defense & Government Contracts
ARFF and emergency response for DCMA-administered and other federal contracts, delivered to contract specifications with the personnel, apparatus, and documentation those programs demand.
Private Airfields & Cargo Hubs
Dedicated ARFF for private operations that need it, from industrial airfields to a major national air-cargo hub, whether the bar is full Part 139 or a defined baseline of trained, equipped response.
ARFF compliance is a full-time program, not a line item.
Whether your field answers to Part 139 or to a private contract standard, the work is the same: qualified personnel on duty, compliant apparatus and agents, recurring live-fire training, and records that hold up to inspection, every day, without a lapse.
Part 139 also permits a certificate holder to meet these duties through an independent organization or designee identified in the Airport Certification Manual. Rural Metro Fire is built to be that partner. We take the hiring, the training, the apparatus, the agents, and the paperwork off your desk, so your team can focus on running the operation while we carry the response obligation.
From Index determination to the fluorine-free foam transition and the Safety Management System requirements, we keep your ARFF program current as the standards move. That is the easy button: one call, and the headache is ours.
Your required Index is set by the longest air carrier aircraft with five or more average daily departures. We confirm it with you during assessment.
The Name Private Airfields Trust.
Rural Metro Fire has provided contracted ARFF services since 1995, and across that record we have maintained a 100% compliance rating on the programs we run, Part 139 and private baseline alike.
That is why operators who cannot afford a gap, from Index C commercial airports to one of the nation's largest air-cargo hubs, hand the obligation to us. When the standard is non-negotiable, experience is the deciding factor.
Rural Metro Fire is part of Brindlee Fire Services, giving our ARFF programs the backing of deep apparatus and fire-service resources.
Compliance and tenure figures reflect Rural Metro Fire's contracted ARFF program history. Confirm current specifics with your RMF representative.
Your Compliance, Handled End To End
Every element a Part 139 ARFF program demands, delivered and documented by Rural Metro Fire so your certification stays sound.
Index Coverage & Response
Trained ARFF personnel and apparatus positioned to deliver your required rescue and firefighting capability throughout air carrier operations, with emergency medical, hazmat, and structural response on call around the clock.
Fluorine-Free Foam Transition
Planning and execution for the move from AFFF to MIL-PRF-32725 fluorine-free foam (F3), including apparatus changeout sequencing, out-of-service coverage planning, and retraining crews on F3 application tactics.
Recurring Training & Live-Fire
Initial and recurring ARFF training covering aircraft and airport familiarization, agent application, and annual live-fire drills, documented to the standards your inspections require.
Safety Management System Support
Hazard identification, risk analysis, and safety assurance practices that align with your airport's Safety Management System obligations, integrated into how our crews operate on your field.
Apparatus, Agents & Records
Maintained vehicles, compliant extinguishing agents, and proportioning-system testing, with the records and documentation a certificate holder needs to demonstrate compliance.
The Move To Fluorine-Free Foam.
With FAA-approved F3 agents now on the market under MIL-PRF-32725, airports are working through how to transition off AFFF. It is not a swap. F3 performs differently, and application tactics are not the same.
Rural Metro Fire manages the parts that trip airports up, so your Index coverage never lapses during the changeout.
- Coverage during changeout. Each vehicle can be out of service for days. We plan interim coverage so you stay at Index.
- Tactics retraining. Crews trained on F3 foam-blanket management and re-ignition prevention.
- Documentation. Changeout, rinsing, and output-based testing recorded for your files.
Support That Goes Beyond Response
The enhancements that make an airport safer day to day, available on top of core ARFF coverage.
Driver-Training Programs
Movement-area driver training for airport and tenant personnel, reducing runway-incursion and apron-safety risk across your operation.
Site Safety Services
On-site safety oversight that supports your hazard-identification and risk-mitigation work and reinforces a strong field safety culture.
OSHA-Compliant Tenant Training
Fire safety and emergency training for airport tenants and contractors, delivered to OSHA-compliant standards and tracked for your records.
Stop Managing ARFF. Hand It Off.
Tell us your field, your Index, and where you are on the F3 transition. We will map a coverage plan built around your operation, and carry it from there.
Request A Coverage AssessmentRequest A Coverage Assessment.
Share a few details about your field and a Rural Metro Fire ARFF representative will follow up to scope a program built for your operation, Part 139, federal, or private.
- A response scoped to your required Index or contract standard.
- A practical path through the F3 foam transition.
- Training and documentation that holds up to inspection.