Midair Alarm Over Europe: Hungarian Fighter Jets Scrambled After Israeli Passenger Plane Lost Contact

Hungarian Air Force fighter jets were scrambled the day before yesterday toward an Israeli passenger plane after it lost contact with civilian air traffic controllers while flying through Hungarian airspace. That is what Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said today (*Shabbat*).

The aircraft was an Airbus passenger plane traveling from Tel Aviv to Prague. During the flight, the plane stopped responding to calls from Hungary’s civilian air traffic control unit, an incident that triggered NATO’s standard air policing procedures.

According to Magyar, once the loss of contact was identified, Hungarian Air Force fighter jets were immediately dispatched to locate the plane, identify it, and establish communication with the crew. Shortly after takeoff, the Hungarian pilots succeeded in making visual contact with the passenger plane, while also working to restore communication between it and ground control authorities.

Later, radio contact between the plane’s crew and Hungarian air traffic controllers was restored. In accordance with standard NATO procedures in cases involving lost contact with a civilian aircraft, the fighter jets continued escorting the Israeli plane until it exited Hungarian airspace and crossed toward Austria. The aircraft then continued on its planned route to its destination in Prague.

Arkia issued an official response to the incident, stating: "The flight crew operated in accordance with the approved flight plan and along the pre-established flight paths. At a certain stage during the flight, contact between the aircraft and the Hungarian air traffic control unit was lost. To the best of our understanding, following the loss of contact, the Hungarian authorities decided to deploy a military aircraft that approached the plane, after which communication with the flight crew was restored."

The company emphasized that an internal review has been opened to examine the circumstances of the incident, alongside clarification with the Hungarian authorities. It also said: "The incident is under the company’s internal review, which will examine its circumstances with the authorities in Hungary as well. The aircraft continued its flight as planned and landed safely at its destination. We stress that at no point during the flight was there any danger to the aircraft, the passengers, or the crew."