Bozeman Yellowstone Int'l Airport to Conduct Full Scale Aircraft Accident Exercise on May 22, 2021

BOZEMAN, MT (May 19, 2021). Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) will conduct a full-scale aircraft disaster exercise on Saturday, May 22, 2021 to test on-scene coordination between the airport, airline and emergency response personnel from throughout the valley. This exercise meets the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirement to conduct a full-scale emergency exercise every three years in addition to annual table-top drills.

Approximately 200 participants will take part in the exercise playing the part of passengers, friends and relatives.  Multiple agencies, businesses and organizations partner in this exercise with the airport staff including Central Valley Fire, American Medical Response, Life Flight Network, Jet Aviation,  American Red Cross, Hope Animal-Assisted Crisis Response, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, students from Summit Aviation, Salvation Army, Karst Stage and numerous others.

“This exercise, held every three years, is our opportunity to coordinate our emergency response plan with the various emergency responders from throughout the Gallatin Valley,” said Airport Director Brian Sprenger.  “In smaller communities like ours it is necessary to utilize all available resources and for all of us to work together effectively during a crisis. Exercises like this provide us the opportunity to constantly improve each of our emergency response plans.” 

Airport neighbors may notice an increased presence of law enforcement and fire personnel; please do not contact 911, this is part of the exercise. The exercise will not impact airline or air traffic at the airport.

Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport serves as a year-round gateway to Yellowstone National Park. BZN also serves the recreation areas of Big Sky Resort, Moonlight Basin and the Bridger Bowl Ski Area as well as the business centers of Bozeman, Belgrade and Livingston and higher education at Montana State University. For more information about Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport visit bozemanairport.com or follow Bozeman Airport on Twitter.