Athens International Airport organizes exercises on an annual basis, with the aim of testing the Airport Emergency Response Plan (AERP), checking the effectiveness and efficiency of the available means and systems, familiarizing and training staff in responding to incidents and, most importantly, maintaining the high level of preparedness of all involved parties.
In this context, the successful completion of the Large-Scale Preparedness Exercise, with screenplay title «Aircraft Accident at the Airport» in accordance with the regulations of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
The following organizations participated in this year's preparedness exercise:
- AEGEAN
- Air Traffic Control / Civil Aviation Authority / Airport Control Tower (ATC)
- Airport Fire Department (AFD)
- Fire Department (FD)
- Athens Airport Police Department (IAPD)
- Airport Emergency Medical Service (AEMS)
- National Emergency Center (EKAB)
- Goldair Handling
- Athens International Airport S.A. (AIA)
- National Organization for the Investigation of Air and Railway Accidents and Transport Safety (EODASAAM)
Also participating were volunteers from the Fire Department, who simulated the aircraft's passengers, and volunteers (students) from IEK DELTA 360.ο, who, according to the scenario, simulated the passengers' friends & relatives.
– EXERCISE SCENARIO –
According to the exercise scenario, "On January 27, 2026, an A320 neo aircraft of the AEGEAN airline takes off from Tirana with a scheduled arrival time at Athens International Airport at 11:00 local time.
There are a total of 39 passengers on board the aircraft (6 crew members and 33 passengers).
At 11:00 the flight will crash when the landing gear hits an obstacle near the entrance to runway 21R.
Part of the aircraft's tail detaches. The remainder of the fuselage and wings rotate and slide to the southeast. It eventually comes to rest to the left of the runway on Taxiway "B" between the connecting Taxiways "A2 - A4."
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For the purposes of the exercise, the following Emergency Centers were activated and operated:
- Crisis Management Center
- Reception Place for Friends and Relatives of Passengers
- AIA Emergency Information Center
- Airline Call Center
- Passenger & Crew Reception Areas
- as well as the relevant centers organized by the Air Carrier.
As part of the exercise, the publication of announcements by the involved Services/Organizations to inform the public was simulated.
Photo By Apaleutos25 (Giorgos Voudouris) – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=136959930 https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/
