Just a few hours after EgyptAir’s A320 with 66 people aboard crashed in the Mediterranean on Thursday, another aircraft narrowly avoided a fatal disaster over Greece.
The Delta Air Lines aircraft, from Paris to Kuwait, entered the Athens Flight Information Region(FIR) at 7.10pm local time on Thursday without identifying itself and pilots did not respond to repeated calls by controllers from Italy and Greece for at least an hour, an official said on Sunday, confirming media reports.
Because of terrorist attack or hijack fears, the incident was immediately escalated by the Greek Civil Aviation authorities to the Ministry of Defense.
Following military protocol, at 7.49pm two F-16 fighter jets intercepted the Delta plane while it was flying near the Aegean island of Santorini.
F-16 pilots attempted to make visual contact with the passenger jet pilots but reported to the ground their being in normal sitting position but possibly asleep.
One of the F16s flew in front of the passenger plane and with light signals attempted to alert the pilots while the other flying next to the passenger cabin.
After passengers reported the presence of a military jet to flight attendants, the latter knocked on the cockpit door to wake up pilots.
Pilots then contacted Greek authorities at 7.55pm and exited the Athens FIR at 8.10pm.
The incident occurred just after the EgyptAir Airbus A320 carrying 66 people from Paris to Cairo disappeared off radar screens in the early hours of Thursday, without its crew sending a distress signal.
(Culled from miragenews.com)
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