The Aer Lingus pilot who allegedly did not want to land his flight at a French air base after a bomb threat is free to leave France after being questioned.
On Thursday, Aer Lingus flight EI402 departed from Dublin Airport bound for Rome Fiumicino Airport, but ultimately received a military escort to land at Évreux-Fauville Air Base in Normandy following a bomb threat.
The bomb threat, which turned out to be a hoax, was one of many made via email against flights across Europe on Thursday as well as earlier in the week.
The diversion procedure for Thursday's Aer Lingus flight was initiated immediately after the bomb threat had been reported on board, a spokesperson for the Office of French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu told IrishCentral on Thursday.
However, the spokesperson noted that when the pilot did not cooperate as expected with the authorities, the Prime Minister ordered fighter jets to intercept and escort the aircraft.
The Aer Lingus flight was carrying 151 passengers and six crew members.
Speaking with the AFP on Thursday, Évreux's public prosecutor Rémi Coutin said the Aer Lingus pilot allegedly refused to comply with the order given to land at a military airport, preferring a civilian airport.
“Two fighter jets therefore had to take off to escort it to Air Base 105," Coutin said on Thursday, adding: "This constitutes a specific violation of the transport code."
However, on Friday, Coutin confirmed with the Irish Times that the Aer Lingus pilot, as well as the co-pilot, had been questioned and was free to leave France.
“Investigations are still ongoing,” Coutin told The Irish Times on Friday. “The pilot and co-pilot have been authorized to leave French territory following their interviews yesterday [Thursday].”
"Acted impeccably"
When asked for comment on the situation, an Aer Lingus spokesperson told IrishCentral on Friday: "The captain and crew on Aer Lingus flight EI402 acted impeccably and were thoroughly professional throughout yesterday’s [Thursday's] security issue.
"Safety and the care of our passengers is Aer Lingus' top priority, and this was upheld professionally by the captain and crew of the aircraft throughout in what were very challenging circumstances."
Separately, The Journal reports that Daniel Langan, president of the Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (IALPA), said it’s “standard procedure” for authorities to question crew when a landing is unplanned.
“In the case of an Irish-registered aircraft, these responsibilities and powers are governed by applicable Irish law, as well as the relevant laws of the state in whose airspace the aircraft is operating,” he said.
“The pilots cooperated fully with the French authorities and are being represented in France by IALPA’s sister union, the SNPL.”
Langan said the IALPA “fully supports” the pilots involved.
“The IALPA fully supports the pilots involved and is satisfied that their actions were consistent with their professional obligations and their overriding responsibility for aviation safety.”
Pilot was "very informative"
Speaking with RTÉ News on Thursday, flight passenger Katie McAteer, who was travelling from Dublin to Rome with friends for a wedding, recalled how just over an hour into the flight, the pilot announced a problem with the plane and that they would have to land in Paris.
McAteer said she knew similar threats had been made against other flights in recent days.
"And then we saw like a fighter pilot flying right beside the plane, so I think at that point, we all kind of knew what was going on," McAteer told RTÉ.
"And then a few minutes later, the pilot came back on again. He was a lovely guy... very, very informative and said... 'I'm sure you've all seen on the news what's happening.'
"But he did say it doesn't seem to be credible, but the French Air Force had asked us to land in an air base in France."
After circling, the flight finally landed at the Évreux airbase, though passengers remained on the plane for about two hours. After disembarking, passengers were checked by sniffer dogs, and their bags, which had to be left on the plane, were also checked.
Another passenger, John May, told the Press Association that the Aer Lingus pilot was "very calm," "great," and "brilliant," and that he and his fellow passengers were treated well by Aer Lingus and the French officials.
Comments