Hartfield-Jackson prepares for winter weather with annual snow, ice drill

ATLANTA - With five runways and seven concourses, it takes a village to keep the world’s busiest airport on track, but weather can easily disrupt the operation.

On Wednesday with blue skies and crisp chilly air as the backdrop, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport put on a full-scale simulation to make sure they are prepared for winter weather.

"We try to make it as realistic as possible for anything that could happen during the event, we try to throw into it," said Augustus Hudson, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport Assistant General Manager, Emergency Management.

The drill was hands-on and allowed about 200 people from the airport, airlines and several agencies to get ready for the possibility of snow and ice.

While the airport has not had measurable snow since January 2022, it brought out the snow removal and prevention equipment, shut down the southernmost runway and practiced what it would do if the weather turned bad.

"We practice for irregular operations, which could be weather operations, it could be thunderstorms, it could be anything that could impact the airport," Hudson said.

In May, FOX 5 was given a tour of the airfield and saw how the ops team works around the clock to keep things running smoothly.

"The weather is always the most unpredictable aspect for us, just because that's the one aspect of the airport that we have absolutely no control over," said Josh Gilmartin, Operations at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

For passengers, weather can put wrinkles in travel plans. The airport hopes being prepared can minimize impacts and allow them to bounce back quickly.

"We are always concerned about these things, so we try to take a look at the weather, but you can't do a lot about it, you just kind of got to roll with it," said Jon Van Winkle.

The airport’s ultimate goal is to make sure it stays open no matter what Mother Nature throws its way.