CX flight intercepted by Hungarian fighter jets after contact loss

A Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to London briefly lost contact over the air space of Romania, prompting NATO to send fighter jets as a warning.

The Cathay CX257 flight eventually landed safely in London.

The Hungarian Defence Minister posted on social media that an Airbus A350 aircraft, while flying over Romania en route from Hong Kong to London at around 2 PM local time last Saturday, failed to contact civil air traffic control, triggering a NATO rapid response alert.

Hungary, which borders Romania, sent fighter jets and issued a visual warning over the Hungarian border.

The Cathay aircraft subsequently contacted air traffic control, and the fighter jets returned to their air base.

Cathay said the incident is under investigation, and added the safety of the plane and its passengers were not compromised.