Nuremberg Airport Briefly Shuts as Jets Escort Corendon Flight Under 7500 Code

Nuremberg airport briefly halted flights on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, after Corendon Airlines flight XR456 transmitted the international 7500 code over Croatia. Eurofighter jets escorted the aircraft to a safe landing.

The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Corfu, Greece, to Nuremberg with 178 passengers aboard, according to the airline. The airport suspended operations while authorities responded.

The signal went out between approximately 08:15 and 08:28 UTC. Flight-tracking data placed the landing at approximately 10:16 UTC, or 12:16 p.m. local time.

Police spokesman Michael Petzold said authorities treated the code as a possible hijacking alert. The cockpit and control tower could not reach the crew by radio.

“Since we were then unable to reach the cockpit, and the tower was also unable to contact the cockpit, we had to assume the worst, that it might indeed be a hijacking.”

Petzold said authorities had “received a code directly from the cockpit that suggested a hijacking.” The airline later attributed the transmission to a short-lived technical problem.

Corendon said the signal was sent “while in Croatian airspace due to a brief malfunction in the radio communication system.” It said “no emergency situation occurred” and that the passengers, crew and aircraft were never in danger.

Police cordoned off the airport and coordinated checks with border police, airport management and German air-traffic authorities. An airport announcement said flight operations had been suspended because of an in-flight emergency, while confirming the Corfu flight had landed safely.

The airport closure delayed six flights and rerouted arrivals

The disruption affected scheduled services. An airport spokesperson said six flights were delayed, including two arrivals and four departures.

At least two inbound flights diverted as a precaution. Reports listed several possible diversion airports.

Police later said: “Checks at the scene established that there is no danger.” The airport returned to normal operations after authorities completed their checks.

Middle Franconia police described the alert as “an unclear air emergency.” Authorities had not confirmed a hijacking; police statements said inspections found no danger, and the airline said the alert stemmed from a radio malfunction.

Three earlier pilot reports led to a separate drone search

Three pilots reported a possible drone or unidentified object near the airport between approximately 2:00 and 4:00 a.m. local time. Their reports came during takeoff or landing.

Airport personnel, border police and German air-traffic-control authorities searched the area. A police helicopter joined the effort, but no drone was confirmed.

Petzold said the search, “which included among other things a police helicopter, did not lead to the verification of the reported object.” He said the Nuremberg border police inspectorate was conducting further investigations.

Police said the reported sightings were not connected to the Corendon flight emergency. The searches had begun hours before the aircraft transmitted its alert.

The jets launched from a base with a 15-minute alert rule

The fighters came from Tactical Air Force Wing 74 at Neuburg an der Donau in Bavaria. Neuburg is one of Germany’s two air-policing bases; the other is in Wittmund, northern Germany.

The German Air Force keeps two armed Eurofighters on Quick Reaction Alert at each base. Aircraft must become airborne within 15 minutes of an alert to identify, monitor or escort planes that may raise airspace-security concerns.

The fighters escorted the passenger aircraft to Nuremberg, then returned to base. Police issued an all-clear after the airport checks.

The incident came amid heightened European concern about unexplained drone activity and possible airspace-security threats linked to Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine. The flight landed at approximately 12:16 p.m. local time.