Swiss minister grounded because French misread plane ID
French aviation authorities reportedly mistook a letter in the registration number of the Cessna being flown by Swiss Interior Minister Alain Berset over a restricted military area. As a result Berset did not react to French warnings, triggering a military response.
Berset’s plane was forced to land by the French military after he accidentally flew too close to the Avord military airbase in central France on July 5. He was allowed to continue his private flight after identifying himself and showing the necessary customs approvals.
However, the SonntagsZeitung revealedExternal link that during his flight from Ecuvillens near Fribourg to Châtellerault in western France Berset was called three times by radio with the aircraft identification “HB-TOR”. But the identification of his rented aircraft was actually “HB-TDR”,
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Aviation experts told the newspaper that Berset had not responded to the call because he didn’t think the authorities’ alerts were meant for him. Berset did not make a statement on the report. The interior ministry and the French Embassy in Bern also did not want to comment on the report when asked by the Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA.
The incident generated a lot of coverage in the Swiss media, with reactions ranging from amusement to calls for Berset’s resignation.
Berset has held a pilot’s licence since 2009 and occasionally rents light aircraft for private flights, according to the interior ministry.
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