Israeli flight from Thailand faced attack by 'hostile elements'
An El Al Israel Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on its final approach to Newark Liberty International Airport.
“Hostile elements” attempted to take over the communication network of an El Al plane flying from Phuket to Ben-Gurion Airport on Saturday night and divert it from its destination, KAN Reshet Bet reported on Sunday. The plane reached its destination safely.
This is the second time such an incident has occurred in the past week, according to the report.
The incident took place over an area where the Iran-backed Houthis are active, although sources in Somalia told KAN that a group in the de-facto state Somaliland, which recently signed an agreement with Ethiopia, is responsible for the attempted attack.
Crew noticed the attack and thwarted it
During the incident, instructions were given to the crew that were different from their set route, raising concerns that someone was trying to damage the plane or lead it to dangerous areas, maybe even to conduct a kidnapping.
El Al Israel Airlines planes are seen on the tarmac at Ben Gurion International airport in Lod, near Tel Aviv, Israel March 10, 2020. (credit: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
El Al Israel Airlines planes are seen on the tarmac at Ben Gurion International airport in Lod, near Tel Aviv, Israel March 10, 2020. (credit: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
The crew disobeyed the instructions and quickly switched to alternative means of communication while also checking the data against other air traffic controllers and realizing that they were being misled.