Kolkata: A dramatic hijack of an aircraft, tense negotiations, and finally, the storming of the aircraft by National Security Guard (NSG) commandos, followed by a terror attack on the Airports Authority of India office at the Kolkata airport and a counterstrike by NSG to neutralise the terrorists, were played out at the airport over seven hours. This began on Saturday night and ended in the early hours of Sunday. The real-life scenario, with an actual Airbus A320 aircraft, flight crew, and 75 ‘dummy’ passengers and hijackers, was enacted with seriousness. CISF and NSG personnel carried out a full-scale joint counter-hijack and counter-terrorist exercise, it was planned and coordinated with various airport stakeholders and security agencies to evaluate preparedness in the event of a security threat.The simulated hijack scenario was initiated when the Air Traffic Control received an emergency call from the ‘hijacked’ aircraft. CISF Quick Reaction Teams cordoned off the aircraft while officers from the Intelligence Bureau and the ministry of home affairs engaged in negotiations with the hijackers. When negotiations failed, the NSG Counter Hijack Task Force launched a coordinated operation to storm the aircraft. Simultaneously, a counter-terrorist exercise was initiated simulating an armed terrorist attack on AAI offices, where 12 employees were taken hostage, and the building’s power supply was disabled. State Police Special Task Force attempted entry but faced heavy resistance and simulated casualties. After a briefing from the STF, the NSG team executed a tactical operation, neutralised six simulated terrorists, and rescued all hostages.
