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Suspense in the Skies

The 116 passengers on board an Olympic Airlines plane en route from Athens to Dusseldorf via Thessaloniki were alarmed when the pilot was forced to make an abrupt manoeuvre, because according to the instruments, the plane was on a collision course with two fighter jets. A stewardess was lightly injured on the leg, while two passengers suffered shock. The plane, which landed as normal at 09:30 in Thessaloniki, remained at "Macedonia" airport until the injured stewardess was substituted by one of her colleagues, and then departed for Dusseldorf. Defence Minister Evangelos Meimarakis was informed on the incident while taking part in the Cabinet meeting. He noted the Airforce will thoroughly investigate into the causes, which led to the incident.
The incident occurred when the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) sounded the alarm during the landing process. Olympic Airlines captain Kostas Handrinos reacted promptly and set the plane on an upward course.
The TCAS sounded the alarm when it determined that two fighter jets were flying somewhere over the area between the island of Skyros and Thessaloniki at 18,000 feet, crossed paths over air lane Blue 1, where the passenger plane was traveling on, and came closer than international safety limits. However, there was no actual danger of a collision, announced the Ministry of Defence.
Calm and true professionals, the Boeing crew followed the suggested procedures and landed the plane at the Thessaloniki airport safely. As per the doctor of the "Macedonia" airport, Giannis Papadopoulos, two female passengers suffered a panic attack and one stewardess was lightly injured on the left ankle. "She sustained a minor injury and I suggested she rest," said Mr Papadopoulos. The injured stewardess boarded on another plane and returned to Athens, while the two passengers were submitted to cardiogram and then reboarded the plane en route to Dusseldorf.