MINSK, 20 June (BelTA) – A counterterrorism exercise took place in the Minsk National Airport on 20 June, BelTA has learned.
According to the scenario, at 9:40 the air traffic control officer of the Belarusian air traffic control enterprise Belaeronavigatsia received a distress call from a Boeing 737 aircraft, which was flying over Belarus on the way from N City to M City. The captain of the aircraft reported hearing gunfire and said unknown people had been trying to enter the cockpit. Communication with the aircraft was lost then. Attempts to restore it were unsuccessful. The captain did not respond to the air traffic control.
Following the protocol, Belaeronavigatsia alerted the relevant authorities about the suspected illegal attempt to interfere with the operation of commercial aviation. The chairman of Belarus' State Security Committee (KGB) ordered a special operation. The duty wing of jet fighters was sent to intercept the aircraft in distress. Units and assets of various government agencies were dispatched to the Minsk National Airport in line with the plan designed to stop the illegal interference with the operation of commercial aviation.
Meanwhile, departures from the Minsk airport were suspended until further instructions. Arriving aircraft were rerouted to backup airfields. Evacuation procedures were enacted.
At 10:10 the captured aircraft was forced to land in the Minsk airport. The aircraft was surrounded by police units and the airport's security units. A crisis center was deployed at the airport's premises.
Initial contact was established with the people, who had captured the aircraft. Thanks to information exchange with foreign law enforcement agencies and special services the identity of the criminals were ascertained and their motives were assessed. It turned out the aircraft had been captured by a group of four men with radical views for the sake of stating their political demands.
The criminals refused to surrender peacefully and decided to split up. One group intended to use the aircraft to fly to another country. Another group intended to take some of the hostages and travel towards the Belarusian border on bus. The criminals demanded a passenger bus. They warned the negotiators that if one group is terminated, the other group will kill all the remaining hostages.
The crisis center decided to use force then. Plans were made to give the terrorists a bus to divert their attention. Once they and some hostages boarded the bus, KGB units stormed the aircraft while SWAT teams took care of the bus. In a real emergency the two teams would have to storm their targets at the same time. But for the sake of demonstration the two assaults were staged sequentially.
Representatives of the administration of Minsk and the oblast, the State Security Committee (KGB), the Interior Ministry, the State Border Committee, the Emergencies Ministry, the army, the Investigative Committee, the State Forensic Examination Committee, the Healthcare Ministry, the Transport and Communications Ministry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minsk National Airport, the Belarusian air carrier Belavia, and the air traffic control enterprise Belaeronavigatsia took part in the exercise on 20 June.
