Increasing preparedness and improving cooperation through the traditional Broken Wing Exercise

02.07.2021

On Tuesday, 22nd June 2021, a traditional three-day crisis response exercise called Broken Wing 2021 took place at the Aviation Academy’s training field at Ljubljana Airport. The exercise was organized by the Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation Board of the Ministry of Defence, in coordination with the National Forensic Laboratory of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Fraport Slovenija. More than 70 members of various organizations took part in the exercise, including representatives of the Slovenian Armed Forces, the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief, the Criminal Police Directorate, the Institute of Forensic Medicine, Kranj Fire Brigade, and representatives of other NATO member states. As in previous years the exercise attracted many observers, including the Minister of Defence, Matej Tonin.

This year’s scenario involved a collision of two military aircraft. In the morning the accident was announced as follows: “A low altitude collision occurred during the final approach of a Lockheed Martin C130 Hercules and the departure of a Pilatus PC-9M, due to miscommunication and poor visibility. The co-pilot of the Pilatus PC-9M ejected and landed close to the wreckage. He is unconscious. The pilot is probably dead and still trapped in the ejection seat. The number of crew members onboard the C130 is uncertain; it is assumed that the crew consists of the pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and load master. Their condition is unknown; the Lockheed Martin C130 landed safely but with fuel leakage that ignited on landing.” Slovene Air Traffic Control immediately activated search and rescue procedures. The airport fire brigade was the first on site, while other civil and military units joined them within a foreseen timeframe. This year one of the local fire brigades also participated in the Exercise, the result of Fraport Slovenija’s commitment to involving the fire brigades in the vicinity of the airport in exercises more often, as they are part of the Airport Emergency Plan and would respond in the event of a larger scale incident

Visitors were able to observe the extinguishing of the fire in the aircraft and the search and rescue procedures. In a further development of the exercise, the participants offered visitors a demonstration of the security of the crash site, an inspection and supervision from the helicopter for the purpose of checking the safety of the approach, aerial photography, an examination of the area for the possible presence of explosive agents/dangerous materials, the identification and protection of evidence, and forensic activity, such as the identification of the victims. “The Broken Wing Exercise is an outdoor classroom for cooperation between different organizations which are responsible for first response and aircraft accident and incident investigation in Slovenia. It increases the readiness and coordination of all the involved actors, and is training at the professional level in this field,” said the Minister of Defence, Matej Tonin.

The exercise first took place fifteen years ago. At that time, it was only a one-day exercise involving a restricted number of specialists in accident investigation from Slovenia. In recent years it has expanded and crossed professional and national borders. Now the three-day exercise each year attracts more than 100 visitors and participants from Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Hungary, the United Kingdom and the USA. The exchange of knowledge and experience broadens every year and contributes to the better preparedness and cooperation of all involved in the management of crisis situations. It also offers an opportunity for testing and integration of new technologies such as, for example, Unmanned Aerial Systems.