Two Belgian F-16s intercepted a cargo plane from China in Dutch airspace on Tuesday and escorted it to Liège airport. The reason was a bomb threat, which later turned out to be false. Christian Delcourt, the spokesman for Liège Airport, said so.
The Netherlands and Belgium alternately monitor the airspace for a number of months. Two fighter aircraft are permanently available for this.
The two Belgian F-16s took off on Tuesday evening, at the request of the Dutch air combat control. They intercepted the cargo plane in Dutch airspace and escorted it to Liège. That was the final destination of the aircraft, the Ministry of Defense reported. It was an aircraft of the airline Air China Cargo.
There was a bomb threat for the Boeing 777, but the report turned out to be false, the spokesman for Liège Airport reported. The aircraft landed in Liège after 8 p.m. without any problems.
Several airport hangars were evacuated in connection with the landing. The airport spokesperson says that the airline itself made the report. That happened after rumors of threats against other Chinese planes on social media.
The F-16s flew faster than the sound in the Netherlands, so that a dull bang could be heard.