Interesting that the jet was diverted by US fighters from Minot N.D. It would have been interesting if the fighters had decided the jet was bound for the AFB at Minot and shot down all the executives. Were sorry, collateral damage.
Cheers, Ken Hanly
Jet headed to Washington diverted to Manitoba
By ALLISON LAWLOR Globe and Mail Update
U.S. jet fighters escorted a private jet headed for Washington, D.C., to an emergency landing Friday in Manitoba because of incorrect information received from an onboard electronic device.
RCMP Sergeant Steve Saunders said F-16s from Minot Air Base in North Dakota brought the Gulfstream jet to its landing at the Brandon Municipal Airport, shortly before 3:30 p.m. local time on Friday.
The plane, registered to AOL Time-Warner, the American media and entertainment conglomerate, was flying to the U.S. capital from Japan with company executives onboard, Jill Watt, a director with the City of Brandon, told globeandmail.com on Friday.
Police and emergency vehicles surrounded the plane, but Sgt. Saunders said he believed the incident did not involve a security threat.
U.S. and Canadian jet fighters have increased patrols of North American air space after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in which hijacked commercial airliners crashed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
TV reports showed people walking off the executive jet in Brandon with their hands up in the air. However, Ms. Watt could not confirm this.
The Brandon airport, located about 200 kilometres west of Winnipeg, received a warning from Nav Canada, the organization responsible for providing navigation services in Canadian airspace, at around 3 p.m. that an emergency signal had been sent out from a private jet, Ms. Watt said.
The warning stated that there could be a potential hijacking onboard the jet, she said.
The six passengers and four crew on the flight were taken off the plane one at a time escorted by local police and RCMP, she said, adding they were questioned by police and later released.
"Everyone on the plane will return to the plane and will return to Washington," she said.
The jet, which originated in Japan, had previously landed in Anchorage, Alaska, for refuelling, she added.
John Christinsen, Brandon airport manager, said he was told by Winnipeg air traffic control that the flight, which originated in Japan, was "squawking wrong" - meaning an onboard electronic device that helps air controllers track the plane was sending out incorrect information.
Nav Canada received incorrect warning signals that might have been the result of a communication or technological problem, Ms. Watt said.
Witnesses said up to 12 RCMP and Brandon city police cars, including an emergency response team, surrounded the plane.
Corey Allum, general manager of the Brandon Flying Club, could see the plane from his office.
"There's police pretty well everywhere," Mr. Allum said.
Mr. Allum, who has a radio in his office, could hear police communicating with the jet, asking someone on board questions.
No one asked the flying club to evacuate the airport but added he sent all of his staff home.
A Time-Warner spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment.