Air India plane loses contact with ATC over Hungary, escorted to safety by fighter jets

Meanwhile, the flight has landed safely with all passengers and crew safe.

 A Hungarian fighter jet was deployed subsequently to ensure safety of the passengers on board.

A London-bound Air India flight AI-171 from Ahmedabad had lost contact with Air Traffic Control flying over Hungarian air space on Friday. A Hungarian fighter jet was deployed subsequently to ensure safety of the aircraft with at least 231 passengers and 18 crew members on board.

An Air India spokesperson said that it had lost contact due to frequency fluctuation. The flight, which departed from Sardar Vallabhai International Airport, landed safely at London’s Heathrow airport with all passengers and crew safe, the spokesperson added.

Air India has already started a probe into the incident. This is the second such reported incident of an Indian aircraft losing contact with the ATC in the European airspace in a month’s time. On February 16, Jet Airways flight Jet Airways flight 9W-118 from Mumbai had lost communication with the Germany’s ATC on its way to Heathrow airport in London, forcing the German Air Force to scramble two fighter jets after it.

Source:Indianexpress