MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) – Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport held an emergency preparedness full-scale exercise as required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Tuesday, May 5.

The exercise was an emergency response to a simulated aircraft hitting a vehicle on a runway. It was designed to test and evaluate the operational capability of the airport’s emergency management system and mutual aid partners during a mass casualty incident. 

“This is a full-scale activation of our emergency plan,” said Harold Mester, the director of public affairs and marketing at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport. “We want to make sure our team is trained and ready to go, ready to respond and provide the best response we possibly can.”

Volunteer actors were on scene playing the role of aircraft victims in makeup representing injuries in the simulated emergency event. First responders learned what was happening in the drill in real-time from the Emergency Response Center at the airport. 

“We train all the time, we take it seriously," said Fire Chief Kevin Doyne with the Milwaukee County Fire Department. 

The FAA requires the airport to do the drill every 3 years. Crews at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport do the drill every two years.