El Al plane intercepted by Swiss Forces
Source: Bloomberg Radio (DC)
Breaking news- Swiss intercepted a flight bound to Tel Aviv after a bomb threat.
Awaiting further details.
Read more: Link to source
bluestateguy
(44,173 posts)Do they even have a military?
Angleae
(4,487 posts)BlueMTexpat
(15,370 posts)Military service is mandatory for ALL able-bodied males. It's not mandatory for females, but they can volunteer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conscription_in_Switzerland
sdfernando
(4,935 posts)I thought they only protected the Pope.
BlueMTexpat
(15,370 posts)But that is a special force - not part of the regular military. They originally began as Swiss mercenaries. http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/swiss_guard/swissguard/storia_en.htm
There were some 15,000 men available for this type of work which was "organized" and controlled by the small Confederation of Cantons. The Confederation authorized the enlistment of the men and in return received corn, salt, or other commercial goods. The men themselves regarded this warring as a temporary period of summer emigration. They took part in brief but glorious wars and then returned home with the "pay" and the booty, to spend the winter. They were the best troops of those times. Without cavalry and with little artillery, they had invented a tactic of movement that was superior to all others. Therefore they were in great demand both by France and by Spain. They were similar to a semimobile rampart, standing tall and impenetrable, and it is impossible to understand the Italian Wars without taking these mercenaries into account. Already in the 13th and 14th centuries, after the Swiss Cantons had become independent, many of their men were fighting in Germany and Italy and as the Cantons were unable to prevent this type of emigration, they sought at least to organize it.
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)nitpicker
(7,153 posts)Fighter jets intercept Israeli airliner
Jul 5, 2016 - 10:22
Two Swiss F/A-18 fighter jets have intercepted an Israeli El Al airliner near Schaffhausen due to a bomb threat, authorities said.
The jets had to break the sound barrier while reacting quickly to catch the airliner on a flight that originated in the United States, according to Schaffhausen police and Skyguide, the Swiss air traffic controllers.
(snip)
Such a "hot mission" by the Swiss Air Force is brought on when a foreign aircraft violates Swiss airspace or sends a distress signal.
It was not yet clear which had occurred, but the plane already had been accompanied in France's airspace.
(snip)
leftynyc
(26,060 posts)neighbor is/was flying from NY to Tel Aviv yesterday. Too early to find out of this was her flight - I know she headed to the airport yesterday afternoon.
left-of-center2012
(34,195 posts)What's the fighter plane going to do?
Helen Borg
(3,963 posts)RobinA
(9,894 posts)first thought. Uhhh? Then the continued to fly to Tel Aviv??? Sounds like more to this story.
Igel
(35,320 posts)If a passenger has a box cutter on a US flight, what's the fighter plane going to do?
Give others some measure of control and additional options insteading of just watching the radar screen. That may mean making visual contact with the pilot for confirmation.
In the guy with the weapon takes control of the plane and thinks to use it as a flying bomb, perhaps just damage an engine or two so the plane has to make an emergency landing. Perhaps get in the way so that the plane is forced to change course or land.
Or perhaps blow it out of the sky. It's a tough call--do you kill the 180 or so civilians on board to stop the plane from killing 2000?
This is the trolley problem in psychology.
Yo_Mama
(8,303 posts)won't necessarily be successful in rescuing passengers.
But potentially they could get the plane down for negotiations, if those are possible.
I hope this is an empty threat.
ManiacJoe
(10,136 posts)the casualties on the ground are minimized.
BlueMTexpat
(15,370 posts)Apparently, the Swiss planes "intercepted" to escort and assist the plane whose pilots had received a bomb threat while in Swiss airspace. The El Al flight has since landed safely in Tel Aviv.