Mock aircraft hijack exercise held

B D Narayankar

Press Trust of India

Bangalore, Aug 23: A mock aircraft hijack exercise was conducted at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) today to test the preparedness of the airport in dealing
with unlawful interference with civil aviation operations and to validate its response plan in the case of such incidents.

The mock aircraft hijack exercise was conducted from 12.30 pm to 2 pm.

The scenario created was that of an aircraft hijack and the various processes from the receipt of first information to the resumption of normal operations, including all stages of negotiations, passenger rescue and medical services, were simulated, BIAL said in a press release.

BIAL, in association with the State Government, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Airports Authority of India, Karnataka State Police, Director General of Civil Aviation, airlines and other stakeholders held a full-scale mock exercise by simulating an aircraft hijack.

During this exercise an incident was simulated and all emergency response mechanisms from the airport and the local administration were tried and tested, BIAL said.

During the exercise, normal flight operations were not disrupted since the exercise was carried out during the scheduled maintenance closure hours of the airport, BIAL added.

"A detailed debriefing session was held after the conclusion of the exercise to share learning from the experience," BIAL said.

The activity was split across locations at the airport airside, terminal building as well as the landside airport offices. Over 300 people participated in this exercise, BIAL said.

BIAL conducts mock tabletop as well as full-scale emergency exercises on a regular basis to familiarise the involved parties and constantly update the emergency, safety and security processes of the airport.

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) mandates such exercises at every airport once a year.

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