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India orders probe into passenger aircraft going silent in German air space

Xinhua, February 20, 2017 Adjust font size:

Indian civil aviation authorities have intiated a probe into a serious security scare that was triggered when a passenger aircraft of India's private airline Jet Airways went silent for some time in German air space Thursday.

A senior Indian aviation official Monday said the incident happened on Feb. 16 in German air space that prompted the German Air Force to send two fighter jets to escort the Boeing 777 aircraft carrying over 300 passengers from Mumbai to London.

"The probe will soon bring out the exact cause of the mid-air blackout," the official said, on condition of anonymity.

Dramatic footage of the incident has also been released by Aviation Herald website, which said that the Jet Airways aircraft lost control with the air traffic control in German air space as the pilot chose a wrong frequency for communication.

In a statement, Jet Airways has admitted the blackout mid-air. "Contact between Jet Airways flight 9W 118, from Mumbai to London Heathrow, of February 16, 2017, and the local ATC (air traffic control), "was briefly lost while flying over German airspace," it said.

"Communication was safely restored within a few minutes. As a precaution, the German Air Force deployed its aircraft to ensure the safety of the flight and its guests. The flight with 330 guests and 15 crew subsequently landed at London without incident," the airline said.

It added: "Jet Airways has duly reported the matter to the concerned authorities, including the DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation). As part of the standard process, the flight crew of 9W 118 has been de-rostered pending investigation." Endit