Phantom plane played with the nerves of six NATO countries – EURACTIV

A small aeroplane toyed with the nerves of the air defences of six NATO members before landing on Thursday (9 June) in a small airfield in Bulgaria, whereby the pilot and passengers promptly disappeared.

The prosecutors office in the Bulgarian city of Targovishte launched an investigation into a mysterious incident with a small Beechcraft plane that flew into the skies of several European countries and landed at a local airfield usually reserved for agricultural aircraft.

The aircraft was found abandoned with a still-warm engine.

It is unclear why the 60-year-old two-seater flew over almost all of Europe to land in Bulgaria or whether the unknown pilot was alone or had passengers.

The Bulgarian Ministry of Interior said the plane took off Lithuania and passed through seven countries, including Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Serbia, before landing in Bulgaria. Six of them, except Serbia, are NATO members.

The media reported that the air defences in several countries spotted the intruder, scrambling jets to intercept it while trying to initiate contact with the pilot, without success.

The plane entered Bulgaria from the northern city of Vidin, where it landed for refuelling, but it is not known precisely where it was refuelled.

Whats the purpose? Who are these people? What happened? We are investigating, the Bulgarian Minister of Interior Boyko Rashkov Rashkov was quoted as saying.

The Ministry of Defense announced that the plane entered the airspace of Bulgaria without an approved flight plan shortly after 7 pm on Wednesday.

The plane was reportedly spotted by the Hungarian and Romanian Air Force, which scrambled F-16 jets to intercept the Beechcraft. Upon entering Bulgarian airspace, the countrys air force was also activated.

At no time was the plane a threat to civilian or military infrastructure in Bulgaria. It flew at low altitudes, which made difficult the interception for fighter jets, but it was monitored all the time. The Ministry of Defense is taking the appropriate actions to establish the circumstances, said Defense Minister Dragomir Zakov.

The media quoted the director of the airport in Debrecen, Hungary, who reportedly said the Beechcraft also landed at a small airport in Hungary. Reportedly five or six people got off and refuelled the plane using jerrycans. The Hungarian police tried to stop them, but they were swift and took off quickly.

[Edited by Alice Taylor]

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Phantom plane played with the nerves of six NATO countries - EURACTIV