The Deutsche Flugsicherung(DFS) which is responsible for air traffic control in Germany reported communication with a Kenyan Aircraft had been lost on the 20th of September, prompting an alert signal to Germany’s Bundeswehr who then dispatched two Eurofighters.
According to Aviation Herald, residents on the ground from Landshut to Frankfurt were awoken by supersonic booms of Germany’s Bundeswehr who reported they were dispatching two Eurofighters to intercept an airliner with destination Amsterdam.
The aircraft, a Kenya Airways Boeing 787-800 aircraft with registration 5Y-KZE performing flight KQ-118 from Nairobi (Kenya) to Amsterdam (Netherlands), was enroute at FL400 over Germany when communication with the aircraft was lost
The aircraft was intercepted and its communications were subsequently re-established and the Dreamliner continued to Amsterdam for a safe landing about 30 minutes later.
This interception is a routine SOP for safety and security reasons that is often deployed to escort aircraft that lose contact with air traffic control or don’t respond to communications.
By Victor Shalton Odhiambo
Photo: Courtesy-planespotters.net, by Leo Sheng.
