Fighters of the German Air Force intercepted a Transavia plane on its way to Schiphol this afternoon. According to the Luftwaffe, the aircraft did not make contact with air traffic control. Two Eurofighters crashed through the sound barrier above Hanover in order to check as quickly as possible with the suspicious aircraft whether, for example, there was a hijacking. Dutch F-16s were also ready to deploy, but did not have to take action.
According to a spokesman for the Royal Netherlands Air Force, it was already clear above Germany that it was a false alarm. The Dutch F-16s did take off, but immediately turned it into a training flight, after the Germans had announced that nothing was wrong.
Radio contact was restored when the pilots over Münster saw two German Eurofighters flying alongside them. The Boeing 737 then landed safely at Schiphol. According to a Transavia spokesperson, the radio was accidentally switched off. The plane had taken off from Mykonos (Greece).
Second time in three weeks
Three weeks ago, the Austrian Air Force also had to take action for an aircraft that failed to make radio contact. On April 10, a Boeing 777 from Israel’s El Al flew from Schiphol to Tel Aviv, but Austrian air traffic control failed to contact the pilots as they crossed the border of Germany and Austria. Also then the radio link was restored when the crew noticed the fighter planes next to them.
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