Eurofighters escort Corendon 737 after hijack code, Nuremberg halts flights

A Corendon Airlines passenger flight from Corfu was intercepted by two German Air Force Eurofighter jets and landed at Nuremberg Airport on October 13, 2026, after an emergency alert.

Police in Middle Franconia said they received a report of an unclear air emergency. A spokesperson said officers were working on the assumption of a suspected air emergency, which had not been confirmed. The aircraft landed safely, and an investigation into the cause of the alert is under way.

An airport spokesperson told a German public broadcaster the plane's transponder had reportedly sent squawk 7500, the code for a hijacking, while on approach. What triggered the signal has not been established.

The jet was a Boeing 737-800, registration 9H-CXD, flying as Corendon flight XR456. It was due in at about 12:15 local time and touched down at 12:16, according to flight-tracking data. The German Press Agency reported the Eurofighters shadowed the aircraft before it landed.

Police cordoned off access roads to the airport shortly before the landing, and all flight operations were stopped. Eurocontrol listed the airport as closed until 14:00 UTC.

Tracking data showed the same flight had sent squawk 7500 for part of its departure from Corfu, between 08:15 and 08:28 UTC.