Dulles Airport To Host Disaster Drill

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If you hear emergency vehicles and see smoke or flames coming from Dulles Airport on Saturday morning, don’t be alarmed - it’s just a drill.

Emergency personnel from Dulles and surrounding jurisdictions will be rehearsing their response to a plane crash at the airport. The full-scale exercise will run from 8:30 a.m. to around noon, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), which oversees Dulles.

The simulated aircraft accident will test the airport’s emergency plan and provide hands-on training to police and fire and rescue personnel from Dulles and surrounding communities, the MWAA says. It will involve more than 75 emergency vehicles and more than 125 volunteer actors, made up to simulate injuries sustained in the accident.

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The exercise will take place on a closed runway and will not affect normal airport operations, the MWAA says. A wide-body FedEx jet will be parked on the runway, and two trainer aircraft will be lit on fire, producing visible smoke.

The exercise is closed to the public, but the MWAA cautions that people who live near Route 606 (Old Ox Road), Route 28 and the Dulles Access Road may hear the alarms and see smoke from the event.