The Air Cairo Airbus A320-214 on a flight SM2980 / MSC2980 from Hurghada (HRG) in Egypt to Dusseldorf (DUS), was diverted at 3:15 pm local time to Zagreb Airport where it landed safely at 3:39pm local time.
While in the airspace of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the aircraft began descending from 36,000 feet (11,000 meters) towards Zagreb.
The crew did declare “Emergency” in Sarajevo FIR, but didn’t use “7700” transponder code, which indicates a direct danger to the aircraft and the lives of passengers.
The Airbus A320-214 with registration number SU-BPV and serial number 2966 is 14 years old.
Emergency services of Zagreb Airport were on standby. There were 125 passengers on the plane.
The aircraft left the runway on its own and drove to the parking position W11 at the west parking lot (in front of the old terminal).
The diversion occurred due to engine number 1 failiure (left engine).
Zagreb Airport on this event:
“According to the information of the CROCONTROL, the Air Cairo Airbus A320, on a flight MSC2980 Hurghada – Dusseldorf, requested an emergency landing at Franjo Tuđman Airport today, September 30, 2021 at 3:30 p.m.
All services of Zagreb Airport acted in accordance with the valid Emergency Plan and the prescribed procedure in such situations. After the landing of the aircraft, the passengers are placed in the transit area of the passenger terminal of the Franjo Tuđman Airport, where they are waiting for further instructions from the airline. “
The CROCONTROL provided us with the details of this event:
“In Bosnia and Herzegovina airspace, the pilot declared Emergency (MAYDAY) but without the emergency transponder code 7700. When transfered to Zagreb Approach control frequency, the declaration of emergency was checked once again, which was confirmed by the pilot.
When handed over to tower frequency, the pilot stated that he did not need any assistance on the ground, but as the emergency procedure had already been started and the aircraft was supposed to land in 3-4 minutes, the alert was not canceled.
The aircraft landed without difficulty at 1339 UTC, After landing, the runway was inspected and traffic resumed normally. “
