Crash and learn: City airport organises a real-time drill
A dummy aircraft carrying 150 passengers hit the ground, resulting in a massive fire.
To check its preparedness in an emergency like a plane crash, Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) conducted a real-time simulated exercise on Sunday to check the efficiency of procedures and personnel. Participants were expected to complete the drill in the required time frame, to minimise issues in the case of a real emergency.
According to the airport operator Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd (MIAL), this is the first time an airport of this stature has conducted an emergency response exercise outside the airport premises, in collaboration with all its other stakeholders.
“Through these real-time exercises, it becomes integral for servicing bodies to work towards the overall betterment of passengers,” said an official.
CSMIA along with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), state disaster management authority, Mumbai Fire Brigade, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Mumbai Police, hospitals and ambulance services, participated in the three-hour drill organised by MIAL in coordination with MCGM, GoAir (as affected airline) and SNDT Women’s University (Juhu).
The exercise was conducted by simulating a situation where a domestic passenger aircraft that was approaching to land, descended and crashed at the SNDT Women’s University ground due to an engine failure.
In the exercise, which saw 500 participants, the aircraft , carrying 150 passengers and crew on board, from Ahmedabad, rapidly descended and hit the ground resulting in a massive fire. The passenger (cum freighter) aircraft was also carrying cargo which included dangerous goods that further aggravated the fire.
“To make the exercise realistic, a dummy aircraft was created and partially set on fire to execute the magnitude of the situation. Similarly, police were actively involved for panchnama of ‘deceased’ passengers, allowing for movement of the bodies to Cooper Hospital for the post mortem procedure. Arrangements were also made for all rescued passengers to reunite with family and friends,” said a MIAL spokesperson.
It was taken into consideration that the accident resulted in 75 passenger fatality and 75 injuries. While the exercise was being performed, various security agencies of the airport and airlines were deployed as observers to evaluate the response by various agencies, to combat such emergencies in real-time. An airport official said that apart from Cooper Hospital, Nanavati and CritiCare Hospital, where the injured passengers were rushed for treatment, were also part of the exercise.