Germany briefly shuts Nuremberg airport, scrambles jets to escort flight from Corfu
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BERLIN (AP) — Authorities in Germany briefly shut an airport and scrambled fighter jets to escort a passenger plane after an emergency call raised fears of a possible hijacking but turned out to be over a radio problem, officials said.
The carrier, Corendon Airlines, said the Boeing 737-800 flying from Corfu, Greece, to Nuremberg, Germany, sent out an emergency code late in the morning over Croatia “due to a brief malfunction in the radio communication system.”
In a statement sent to The Associated Press, the airline said “no emergency situation occurred” and the 178 passengers, flight crew or aircraft were not at any point in any danger. The plane landed safely.
As a precaution before the reason for the incident was known, police cordoned off the Nuremberg airport, the German news agency dpa reported.
Police spokesman Michael Petzold later explained that authorities had “received a code directly from the cockpit that suggested a hijacking.”
“Since we were then unable to reach the cockpit, and the tower was also unable to contact the cockpit, we had to assume the worst, that it might indeed be a hijacking,” he said.
Six flights were delayed and two inbound flights were diverted to other airports as a precaution, an airport spokesperson said, according to dpa.
Authorities across Europe have stepped up surveillance of the skies in recent weeks amid an increasing number of mostly mysterious drone incidents and concerns about Russian malfeasance as Moscow’s war in Ukraine continues.
The German government last month blamed Russia for an attempted attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport in August using a drone laden with explosives, and announced a shutdown of a Russian consulate among other measures.
Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Berlin’s allegations.
Moscow has been widely accused by Western officials of running a campaign of sabotage and disruption with the aim of undermining support for Ukraine and destabilizing European nations.