At a press conference in Vienna on 12 October, the Interior Ministry and electricity giant VERBUND announced a three-day nationwide exercise (13–15 October) to test the protection of critical infrastructure against hybrid threats. The drill involves police special units, airport security teams, air-traffic control and energy-network operators and will stage a simulated drone attack on Vienna International Airport alongside sabotage scenarios at key substations. Although primarily a security exercise, the operation has direct implications for global mobility. Airport perimeter checks will be tightened, and passengers on early-morning flights on 15 October should expect lane closures around the Am Hof area in central Vienna, where a live-training sequence will take place. Cargo handlers have been told to factor in longer ID-checks for drivers entering the freight terminal. Minister Gerhard Karner framed the drill as “essential homework” ahead of the full roll-out of the EU Entry/Exit System in April 2027, which will rely on uninterrupted power and secure data links. VERBUND CEO Michael Strugl added that the exercise tests cyber-resilience rehearsed during the blackout simulations last winter. For corporate mobility teams the message is twofold: airports remain safe, but travellers should allow extra time for security checks; and expatriates working in Austria’s energy sector may see on-site badge procedures temporarily tightened.
