The César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport, following the program established in its Self-Protection Plan, held this Wednesday a simulated plane crash, which tested the response capacity of the airport's security services and coordination with external aid means.
The exercise simulated the accident of a commercial flight to Funchal, with 14 passengers and 3 crew members. The aircraft, an ATR-72, twin-engine turboprop, presented a loss of power in both engines, listing and impacting in the Montaña Mina area, outside the airport grounds.
The plane suffered irreparable damage and, of the 17 passengers, 11 died and the rest had injuries of varying degrees.
A simulation adapted to the situation by Covid
After observing the accident and immediately, the Control Tower gave notice to the Fire and Rescue Service (SSEI) and the accident was communicated to the Operations Center, thus activating the Airport's Self-Protection Plan.
The Main and Advanced Command Posts were established, and the Island Emergency Plan (PEIN) and the Territorial Emergency Plan of Civil Protection of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands (PLATECA) were activated. Once the fire was extinguished, the arrival of ambulances and the care and transfer of affected passengers to hospitals were coordinated.
The family rooms were also activated to welcome and provide psychological and health assistance to relatives. Once the situation was under control and the area was declared safe, the command posts declared the simulation over.
Due to the situation derived from the pandemic, contacts have been minimized, complying with the required requirements of maximum personnel in each scenario of the exercise (with mandatory mask, social distancing and hand hygiene).
Emergency services that have participated
In the realization of this exercise, in addition to the staff of Aena and the companies that work at the airport, the Government Delegation and Island Directorate, the Government of the Canary Islands through the Emergency Coordination Center 112, the Cabildo of Lanzarote, the Insular Emergency Consortium, Red Cross, Civil Guard and Local Police of San Bartolomé have participated.
According to Aena, the objective of the simulation has been achieved, testing the effectiveness of the contents of the Self-Protection Plan, the coordination of all resources, the effectiveness in the response, and the increase in confidence of the teams and people involved in this type of situation.
With this exercise, it also states that the César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport complies with the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) regulations regarding emergency planning, which includes all action procedures, as well as protocols for requesting external assistance and coordinating it.
