Advertisement

Helicopter and plane in near-miss in Zurich

Caroline Bishop
Caroline Bishop - [email protected]
Helicopter and plane in near-miss in Zurich
Photo: Thilo Hilberer

A passenger aircraft preparing to land at Zurich airport on Tuesday morning was forced to abort its landing to avoid an unauthorized air ambulance, media reports said on Thursday.

Advertisement

Air traffic controllers Skyguide confirmed the incident on Thursday after a report in newspaper Tages Anzeiger on Tuesday.

The incident involved an Alpine Air Ambulance helipcopter, part owned by motoring club TCS, which was on an urgent medical mission when Skyguide operators spotted it flying in unauthorized airspace, said news agency ATS.

Controllers ordered an approaching Jumbolino aircraft belonging to Swiss International Airlines to abort its landing to avoid the helicopter.

It was not a dangerous incident, Skyguide spokesperson Vladi Barrosa told ATS.

The case is set to be examined by the Federal Civil Aviation Office (BAZL).

The helicopter pilot will be fined should pilot error be judged the cause of the incident.

According to TCS the air ambulance did not alert air traffic controllers of its presence in the restricted area due to meteorological conditions, reported ATS.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also