December 5, 2002 at 7:43 am
The civilian airtraffic authority have issued a warning to the airforce, and they responded by grounding the 41st Squadron. These are British Jaguars. The pilots were told to read the closer.
Historian and pilot Ulf Larsstuvold is currently researching the Mehamn-accident where british Sea Harriers have been accused of interfering with a commuter aircraft before it crashed.
It was his theories that made the Norwegian government probe the crash over again.
Larsstuvold sees clear similarities between this incident and the Mehamn accident. “When the civilian authorities protest, the airforce will take action. Otherwise they do not.”
He also claims that illegal flights are still common today.
This Monday, two Jaguar aircraft flew from Lakselv to Tromsø without having satisfactory radio contact with the civilian ATC. The day after, two similar aircraft flew near Setermoen airforce base without their transponders working. This is an instrument that lets ATC identify their aircraft automatically.
This is just one of more incidents, including an alledged near-miss incident with a Norwegian F-16 and a commuter Aircraft last month.