Pentagon MASCAL

Last updated

The Pentagon Mass Casualty project (codenamed Pentagon Mascal ) was a contingency exercise that was held in the Office of the Secretary of Defense conference room between October 24 and October 26, 2000. The exercise required emergency response teams, members of the defense protective services, and U.S. government officials to conduct emergency simulations in preparation for a possible plane crash into the Pentagon.

In the experiment, emergency personnel were required to hold radio and other communications devices to increase their operational readiness for quickly transporting massive casualties from the disaster area to medical centers. Toy trucks were used as miniature models to simulate emergency transport vehicles for victims.

The event is historically notable as a plane crash into the Pentagon did occur during the 2001 September 11 attacks.

Related Research Articles

American Airlines Flight 77 9/11 hijacked passenger flight; hit the Pentagon

American Airlines Flight 77 was a scheduled American Airlines domestic transcontinental passenger flight from Washington Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia, to Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California. The Boeing 757-223 aircraft serving the flight was hijacked by five Saudi men affiliated with al-Qaeda on the morning of September 11, 2001. They deliberately crashed the plane into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, near Washington, D.C., killing all 64 aboard and another 125 in the building.

Aircraft hijacking, is the unlawful seizure of an aircraft by an individual or a group. Dating from the earliest of hijackings, most cases involve the pilot being forced to fly according to the hijacker's demands. However, in rare cases, the hijackers have flown the aircraft themselves and used them in suicide attacks –most notably in the September 11 attacks– and in several cases, planes have been hijacked by the official pilot or co-pilot; i.e., the Lubitz case.

Ambulance Vehicle equipped for transporting and care for ill and wounded people

An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient.

The September 11 attacks of 2001, in addition to being a unique act of terrorism, constituted a media event on a scale not seen since the advent of civilian global satellite links. Instant worldwide reaction and debate were made possible by round-the-clock television news organizations and by the internet. As a result, most of the events listed below were known by a large portion of the world's population as they occurred.

Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US August 6, 2001 intelligence memo

Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US was the title of the President's Daily Brief prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency and given to U.S. President George W. Bush on Monday, August 6, 2001. The brief warned, 36 days before the September 11 attacks, of terrorism threats from Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, including "patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for a hijacking" of U.S. aircraft.

On September 11, 2001, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) was involved in an ongoing operation which involved deploying fighter aircraft to northwestern North America. The U.S. Military and NORAD had also planned to conduct several military exercises and a drill was being held by the National Reconnaissance Office, a Department of Defense agency. The operations, exercises and drills were all canceled following the September 11 attacks.

Air France Flight 358 Aviation accident in 2005

Air France Flight 358 was a regularly scheduled international flight from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France, to Toronto Pearson International Airport in Ontario, Canada. On the afternoon of 2 August 2005, while landing at Pearson Airport, the Airbus A340-313E operating the route overran the runway and crashed into nearby Etobicoke Creek, approximately 300 m (980 ft) beyond the end of the runway. All 309 passengers and crew on board the Airbus survived, but twelve people sustained serious injuries. The accident highlighted the vital role played by highly trained flight attendants during an emergency.

National Military Command Center

The National Military Command Center (NMCC) is a Pentagon command and communications center for the National Command Authority. Maintained by the Department of the Air Force as the "DoD Executive Agent" for NMCC logistical, budgetary, facility and systems support; the NMCC operators are in the Joint Staff's J-3 (Operations) Directorate. "The NMCC is responsible for generating Emergency Action Messages (EAMs) to missile launch control centers, nuclear submarines, recon aircraft and battlefield commanders".

2005 Iranian Air Force C-130 crash Air crash in Tehran

On 6 December 2005 at 14:10 local time, a Lockheed C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft of the Iranian air force, tail number 5-8519, c/n 4399, crashed into a ten-storey apartment building in a residential area of Tehran, the capital city of Iran.

United States Department of Defense United States federal executive department

The United States Department of Defense is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national security and the United States Armed Forces. The DOD is the largest employer in the world, with over 1.3 million active-duty service members as of 2020. More employees include over 826,000 National Guard and reservists from the armed forces, and over 732,000 civilians bringing the total to over 2.8 million employees. Headquartered at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., the DoD's stated mission is to provide "the military forces needed to deter war and ensure our nation's security".

The 9/11 advance-knowledge conspiracies center on arguments that certain institutions or individuals had foreknowledge of the September 11 attacks in the United States in 2001.

U.S. military response during the September 11 attacks

On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, four commercial airliners were hijacked and deliberately crashed by the radical Islamic terrorist group Al Qaeda. American Airlines Flight 11, departing from Boston, was flown into the North Tower of World Trade Center at 08:46. United Airlines Flight 175, also departing from Boston, was flown into the South Tower 17 minutes later at 09:03. American Airlines Flight 77, departing from Washington Dulles International Airport, was flown into the Pentagon at 09:37. United Airlines Flight 93, departing from Newark Liberty International Airport, was crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, at 10:03 after the passengers on board revolted.

Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules Military transport aircraft

The Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. The C-130J is a comprehensive update of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, with new engines, flight deck, and other systems. As of February 2018, 400 C-130J aircraft have been delivered to 17 nations.

As of July 27, 2018, there have been 2,372 U.S. military deaths and 4 Department of Defense civilian deaths in the War in Afghanistan. 1,856 of these deaths have been the result of hostile action. 20,320 American servicemembers have also been wounded in action during the war. In addition, there were 1,720 U.S. civilian contractor fatalities.

Mass-casualty incident

A mass casualty incident describes an incident in which emergency medical services resources, such as personnel and equipment, are overwhelmed by the number and severity of casualties. For example, an incident where a two-person crew is responding to a motor vehicle collision with three severely injured people could be considered a mass casualty incident. The general public more commonly recognizes events such as building collapses, train and bus collisions, plane crashes, earthquakes and other large-scale emergencies as mass casualty incidents. Events such as the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and the September 11 attacks in 2001 are well-publicized examples of mass casualty incidents. The most common types of MCIs are generally caused by terrorism, mass-transportation accidents, fires or natural disasters. A multiple casualty incident is one in which there are multiple casualties. However the key difference from a mass casualty incident is that in a multiple casualty incident the resources available are sufficient to manage the needs of the victims. The issue of resource availability is therefore critical to the understanding of these concepts. One crosses over from a multiple to a mass casualty incident when resources are exceeded and the systems are overwhelmed

Air medical services

Air medical services is a comprehensive term covering the use of air transportation, aeroplane or helicopter, to move patients to and from healthcare facilities and accident scenes. Personnel provide comprehensive prehospital and emergency and critical care to all types of patients during aeromedical evacuation or rescue operations aboard helicopter and propeller aircraft or jet aircraft.

2000 Marana V-22 Crash Arizona plane crash

On 8 April 2000, a V-22 Osprey aircraft operated by the United States Marine Corps crashed during a night training exercise at Marana Regional Airport near Tucson, Arizona. The crash killed all 19 U.S. Marines on board and intensified debate about the reliability of the Osprey.