Integrating Spatial Planning, Crisis Communication, and Support Facilities Into Family Assistance Centre Governance for Aviation Disaster Preparedness
Downloads
The objective of this research is to analyze the governance and effectiveness of FAC preparedness at Airline X in Indonesia by focusing on three operational dimensions: spatial configuration, communication strategies, and support facilities. The analysis is based on interviews with FAC personnel, emergency response roles, top management, practitioners, an accident response informant, KNKT, and DGCA with support from document examination and space syntactic analysis of potential FAC locations at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. The data indicates that FAC is formally acknowledged in Airline X’s, but its operational readiness is inconsistent. There are three main challenges: differing perceptions of FAC responsibilities across different levels of the organization, the communication flow between the airline and stakeholders involved in providing family assistance is unclear, and there is no reference to what facilities and infrastructure are needed. Spatial preparedness is more than a facilities issue. FAC activation requires predesignated rooms, controlled access, family briefing, registration, medical and psychosocial assistance, logistical arrangements and multi-agency coordination and is a governance challenge. The reports recommend that FAC governance be formalized through improved procedures, periodic simulation, standards for facilities, and family-centered communication protocols along with concepts of aviation disaster relief.
Bahmani, H., & Zhang, W. (2022). A conceptual framework for integrated management of disasters recovery projects. Natural Hazards, 113(2), 859–885. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-022-05328-5
Brown, L., Efthymiou, M., & McMullan, C. (2022). Recovering from a major aviation disaster: The airlines’ family assistance centre. Sustainability, 14(7). https://doi.org/10.3390/su14074040
Bundy, J., Pfarrer, M. D., Short, C. E., & Coombs, W. T. (2017). Crises and crisis management: Integration, interpretation, and research development. Journal of Management, 43(6), 1661–1692. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206316680030
CANSO. (2015). Emergency response planning guide.
Chen, Y., & Zreik, M. (2025). Geopolitical bottlenecks and air transport connectivity between China and the UAE: Implications for BRICS+ cooperation and sustainable tourism. Sustainability, 17(5), 1930.
Crichton, M. T., Lauche, K., & Flin, R. (2005). Incident command skills in the management of an oil industry drilling incident: A case study. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 13(3), 116–128. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5973.2005.00466.x
DiBella, J., Forrest, N., Burch, S., Rao?Williams, J., Ninomiya, S. M., Hermelingmeier, V., & Chisholm, K. (2023). Exploring the potential of SMEs to build individual, organizational, and community resilience through sustainability?oriented business practices. Business Strategy and the Environment, 32(1), 721–735.
ICAO. (2015). Manual of aircraft accident and incident investigation: Part I—Organization and planning (2nd ed.).
ICAO policy on assistance to aircraft accident victims and their families, Doc 9998 (2013).
Itoh, E., Haba, T., & Suzuki, H. (2026). Geoeconomics in air transport: A network-based interpretation of global air transport systems. Aerospace, 13(2), 162.
Kenton County. (2023). Kenton County family assistance center plan. https://www.kentoncounty.org/DocumentCenter/View/2812/Family-Assistance-Center-Plan-PDF?bidId=
Lukaszewski, J. E. (2015). Lukaszewski on crisis communication: What your CEO needs to know about reputation risk and crisis management. Studia Medioznawcze, 3, 151–154. https://doi.org/10.33077/uw.24511617.ms.2015.62.536
Mbanefo, O. D., Madubueze, M. H. C., Anekwe, J. K., Nwadiogbu, N. M., & Egberi, A. E. (2026). Public policy responses to microbial infections and their implications for socio-economic development in Nigerian communities. International Journal of Interdisciplinary Science and Innovation, 5(1), 120–131.
National Transportation Safety Board. (2020). National Transportation Safety Board aviation investigation manual: Regional investigation.
National Transportation Safety Board. (2023). Federal family assistance framework for aviation disasters. https://uscode.house.gov
Pearson, C. M. (1998). Reframing crisis management. Academy of Management Review, 23(1), 59–76. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1998.192960
Pool, R., & Coppola, D. P. (1991). The management of disasters. In Introduction to international disaster management (Vol. 251). https://doi.org/10.1126/science.251.4993.499-a
Samunderu, E. (2024). The scope of the global aviation industry. In The economic effects of air transport market liberalisation: A perspective analysis of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) (pp. 1–116). Springer.
SKYbrary. (2024). Family assistance. SKYbrary. https://skybrary.aero/articles/family-assistance
Son, B.-G., Roscoe, S., & Sodhi, M. S. (2025). Dynamic capabilities of global and local humanitarian organizations with emergency response and long-term development missions. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 45(1), 1–32.
Teahen, P. R. (2012). Mass fatalities managing the community. In Intelligence power in peace and war. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511521737.020
Tierney, K. J., Lindell, M. K., & Perry, R. W. (2001). Facing the unexpected: Disaster preparedness and response in the United States (1st ed.). Joseph Henry Press.
Tiftik, C., & Yakupo?lu, E. (2023). The importance of aviation safety in terms of human resources management in air cargo transportation. Uluslararas? Sosyal Bilimler ve E?itim Dergisi, 5(8), 125–146.
Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 24 Tahun 2007 tentang Penanggulangan Bencana. (2007).
Xu, X., Liu, J., Jiang, J., Lin, B., & Li, L. (2025). Spatial evolution of international air cargo network connectivity in China: 1996–2019. Scientific Reports, 15(1), 25330.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dinda Kharisha, Hayati Sari Hasibuan, Widura Imam Mustopo
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC-BY-SA). that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
