A Hungarian military search-and-rescue helicopter was dispatched on Tuesday afternoon after two gliders entered Hungarian airspace from Austria without establishing radio communication with air traffic control, honvedelem.hu reported.
The helicopter crew identified the two gliders in the airspace, then approached them in accordance with flight safety procedures and applicable regulations, instructing the pilots to use standard hand signals and establish contact on the emergency frequency. Radio contact was established only after several attempts.
Photo: Facebook/Dr. Ruszin-Szendi Romulusz
The gliders subsequently established contact with air traffic control as well, so the military helicopter returned to its base in Pápa (western Hungary).
Photo: Facebook/Dr. Ruszin-Szendi Romulusz
The pilots initially informed air traffic control that Békéscsaba (southeastern Hungary) was their destination. They then turned toward Austria without a transponder signal while maintaining radio contact and left Hungarian airspace.
Photo: Facebook/Dr. Ruszin-Szendi Romulusz
The military said there was no need to scramble fighter jets, as doing so would have incurred unnecessary costs. “Thank you to our soldiers for their service!” the Minister of Defense wrote in a Facebook post regarding the incident.
Via honvedelem.hu; Featured photo: Facebook/Dr. Ruszin-Szendi Romulusz