Mock drill at RGIA to test preparedness for aircraft crash

A 'full-scale night mock emergency exercise' was carried out at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) here using a real aircraft.
The two-and-half hour exercise, which was carried out on Wednesday, involved more than 500 participants from multiple agencies and volunteers.
The mock scenario involved an Airbus-320 of IndiGo, the partner airline in the exercise, developing hydraulic problems and crashing on the runway while landing with passengers and crew on board, an airport release said.
The Air Traffic Controller immediately activated the alarm and declared 'Crash Action'. Airport Rescue and Firefighting Services immediately reached the site.
Meanwhile, all agencies concerned also reached the spot.

The scenario depicted passengers with injuries and casualties. The exercise focused on treating and shifting passengers to hospitals, as well as making the area safe for operations, the release said.
"The scenario gave the rescue team a real-time experience to meet with any eventualities and to study the preparedness of the airport in times of emergency at night. The basic idea was to analyse the preparedness of different agencies in case of such accidents," it said.
The mock emergency exercise which started at 11 pm concluded by 1.30 am successfully without any disruption and inconvenience to normal airport operations, the release said.