A Vulkan Air Antonov An-26, a twin-engined turboprop civilian and military transport aircraft, that was flying from Morocco to Italy had a communication blackout on Sunday, which required military intervention.
According to media Terzo Binario, two F-2000 Euro fighters from 4 Wing Italian Air Force took off Sunday morning to control a charter flight from Tangier (Morocco) to Rome Fiumicino airport.
The two fighter planes reached the civilian plane to determine the nature of the problem. Visual contact with the crew of the aircraft confirmed that there were no emergency situations. The F-2000 planes then escorted the aircraft until it landed in the Rome airport, before returning to their military base.
Terzobinario recalls that the two fighter planes took off from their base around 8:20 am following the orders of the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) in Torrejon. This operation was conducted under the control of the operating rooms of the air surveillance and air defense system.
The Italian air force is monitoring the airspace 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, with an integrated defense system in cooperation with that of other NATO countries, the media concludes.