Media release

Published: 14 October 2026, 15:16

Emergency drill at BER
Airport operator and police conduct a drill simulating a crisis scenario

Today, Wednesday, 14 October 2026, a joint emergency drill involving the Brandenburg State Police and the airport operator was conducted at Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. There was no danger to travellers or the general public. Airport operations at BER were not affected as a result.

The drill scenario was entirely fictional: during a fictional state visit, a demonstration escalates in the vicinity of the airport. Protesters are trying to disrupt the arrival of the guest of state. The situation escalates in several stages, including fires, a sit-in, clashes resulting in injuries and a breach of the fence leading to the airport’s security zone.

The drill was aimed at testing the cooperation between the airport operator, police, fire service, emergency medical services and other relevant agencies under realistic conditions. It focussed on coordinating the emergency services, managing situations involving several concurrent incidents and protecting critical airport infrastructure.

“The safety of passengers, staff and guests is paramount. By way of today’s emergency drill, we are working with our partners to review whether or not our processes, communication channels and decision-making structures function effectively even in complex and dynamic situations. These drills are a key part of ensuring we are ideally prepared for exceptional events,” said István Szabó, Chief Operations Officer at Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH.

Deputy Police Chief Jan Müller added: “A full-scale exercise of this kind is key to testing the coordination between the involved forces under realistic conditions and gaining valuable insights for use in an emergency. I am very grateful to all the Brandenburg Police officers who took part, as well as our BER partners and all others involved, for their great commitment, professional cooperation and diligent approach to preparing and conducting the drill. The value of such a drill lies in identifying weaknesses, critically examining procedures and drawing the right conclusions for future operational scenarios. The insights we have gained help us further optimise our processes and ensure we are ideally prepared for potential operational scenarios.”

Staff from the airport operator, the Brandenburg State Police and other authorities and organisations were involved in the drill. In total, some 350 emergency service personnel, 300 extras and 200 other participants, such as drill coordinators, arbitrators and observers, took part in the drill. Collaboration by the Brandenburg State Police included the auxiliary police, the Criminal Investigation Department, a post-operation support team and communication units.

The knowledge gained will be jointly analysed following the drill. Identified potential for optimisation is to be utilised to continually improve existing operational and communication procedures.

In accordance with the guidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), emergency drills on this scale are to be conducted at least every two years at commercial airports. They are aimed at reviewing and continually improving emergency and crisis management processes at commercial airports.