A mock aircraft hijack exercise was conducted at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) on Saturday afternoon to test the emergency response mechanism of various agencies concerned and to deal with unlawful interference with civil operations.
Minor lapses
Although the mock drill brought to the fore some lapses in regard to the functioning of certain agencies, the lapses were not serious in nature. The exercise helped all the agencies/stakeholders to sensitise themselves with such a scenario, sources in the Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL) told The Hindu .
BIAL, in association with the State Government, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), airport authorities, airlines and other stakeholders held a full-scale mock exercise by simulating an aircraft hijack.
Processes from the very start of the first information receipt, all stages of negotiations, passenger rescue and medical services were simulated, the BIAL said in a release.
Parallel functions were put to test in order to familiarise the involved individuals with the roles, responsibilities and procedures during such incidents.
A detailed debriefing session was held to share the learning after the exercise.
The activity was split across locations at the airside, terminal building and landside airport offices. Over 300 people participated in this exercise that took place from 12.30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
