With weeks to go before a G-8 summit in Alberta, Canada and the United States will hold a major anti-terrorism exercise Tuesday to test how they would respond to several aircraft being hijacked at the same time on the West Coast of North America.
The exercise, dubbed Amalgam Virgo, will involve the RCMP, the FBI, Transport Canada, the Federal Aviation Administration, the North American Aerospace Defence Command and other government agencies on both sides of the border.
In one test, an aircraft will be "hijacked," intercepted by Norad fighter aircraft and forced to land at a U.S. airfield. The same will happen in Canada. The FBI will "take down" the aircraft in the United States and free hostages. The RCMP will handle hostage negotiations in Canada.
The exercise is to test everything from fighter aircraft intercepting and escorting the flights to ending the threat on the ground, officials said.
Amalgam Virgo comes as law enforcement and military officials in Canada prepare for the June 26 and 27 gathering of G-8 world leaders at Kananaskis.
A 150-kilometre area around Kananaskis has been designated a no-fly zone and the Canadian Forces has warned that it will use fighter aircraft to shoot down any aircraft that violate that airspace.
Police have also set up a security perimeter that takes in a 6.5-kilometre radius around Kananaskis. Officers have already been securing the area.
It is not known if Canada's counter-terrorist team, Joint Task Force 2, would be used to assault the "hijacked" airliner that lands in Canada. The unit has conducted similar exercises before.
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