Angela Merkel to miss start of G20 summit after plane's technical difficulties

29.11.2018

A plane carrying the German chancellor had to turn around and land in Cologne after only an hour in the air due to a technical difficulty. She is now on her way to Buenos Aires on a commercial flight.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel missed the start of the G20 summit on Friday after her journey to Buenos Aires for this weekend's summit was interrupted on Thursday when the government's "Konrad Adenauer" Airbus experienced technical difficulties in the air.

The delay will likely complicate Merkel's schedule of meetings at the two-day G20 summit. She had planned bilateral talks with US President Donald Trump and the leaders of China, Russia and India.

"It was a serious malfunction," Merkel told reporters early Friday morning, complimenting a "very, very excellent crew" on board the plane.

Shortly after departing from Berlin on Thursday evening, the plane circled over the Netherlands and landed at the Cologne/Bonn airport in western Germany — which is also home base for the government's aircraft.

Merkel's plane landed at the Cologne/Bonn airport

Merkel, who is also traveling with Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and a pool of journalists, stayed overnight in Bonn, the former West German capital, where the Chancellery still maintains a largely ceremonial presence.

She then traveled on to Madrid with a slimmed-down delegation early on Friday morning, from where she set off to Buenos Aires on a regular commercial flight, according to the airline Iberia.

One passenger on the Iberia plane tweeted pictures of the chancellor strolling through the aisle on the plane and taking her seat amongst the other, regular passengers.

Merkel is due to arrive in Argentina shortly before 6:00 p.m. local time (10:00 p.m. CET), where she will be rushed to the summit in time for a planned gala dinner with world leaders.

Malfunctioning electronic systems

The pilot informed the chancellor and other passengers that a technical defect had caused the "malfunction of several electronic systems" on the Airbus A340-300.

One paper, the Rheinische Post, reported that the government had been investigating the incident as a potential crime, though government sources said investigations "in all directions" were standard in such cases.

According to the report, the pilot spoke of an unprecedented failure of the communications system, while security sources said such a malfunction was supposed to be impossible.

However, a spokesman for Germany's air force ruled out any sabotage, saying there was "absolutely no indication of a criminal act," and that "the [electronic] distribution box was the cause."

The spokesman added that the box is located deep within the plane and is not easily accessible. Officials were still unable to answer on Friday how such a part could be damaged.

Series of aviation hitches

The repeated technical difficulties on government planes as well as Merkel's alternate travel arrangements on a commercial flight were the targets of both concern and lighthearted joking in the German media.

A German satirical news program, the Heute Show, tweeted a picture comparing the way other G20 leaders were arriving at the summit to the German chancellor's commercial airline option. "Merkel opted for an alternative arrival," the Heute Show wrote.

Issues with the government's A340 jets also caused travel problems for German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier during several of his diplomatic trips this year.

Last week, Steinmeier was delayed during a trip to several African countries when the government's "Theodor Heuss" jet — also an Airbus A340 — experienced problems. His trip to Belarus in July was likewise temporarily grounded when the "Konrad Adenauer" suffered issues with its hydraulic system.

Asked about the recent difficulties with government planes, Merkel said the "individual incidents should not make us change the system."

Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Late to G20 summit While en route to a G20 summit in Buenos Aires in November 2018, the A340-300 "Konrad Adenauer" carrying German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Finance Minister Olaf Scholz had to make an unexpected landing at the Cologne/Bonn Airport. Merkel showed up late to the conference in the Argentinian capital. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Rodents? You're kidding right? It was the second consecutive month in which the "Konrad Adenauer" needed to be grounded. The A340 also left Scholz stranded in Indonesia following a meeting of the International Monetary Fund in October 2018 after rodents gnawed through electric cables. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Trouble in Africa The "Konrad Adenauer" isn't the only Airbus belonging to the German government that has experienced problems. The A340 "Theodor Heuss" jet carrying German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier experienced technical problems during his trip to several countries in Africa. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Tell them I'll be late Steinmeier also had his fair share of woes with the "Konrad Adenauer" jet. The German president's trip to Belarus in June 2018 was delayed due to problems with the plane's hydraulic system. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Pressure starts to tell German Development Minister Gerd Müller's schedule was thrown into chaos when he was forced to cancel a visit to Namibia in January 2018 — because of plane trouble. Müller was scheduled to depart Malawi when his Bombardier Global 5000 was unable to take off due to a defective pressure valve. He was eventually able to continue on to Zambia on a commercial flight. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes I hear it's snowing at home German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was grounded in Ethiopia yet again when the "Theodore Heuss" was unable to embark on its return flight due to an air pressure problem. The delay would seem to put Steinmeier ahead of Olaf Scholz for the title of German official most often stranded due to technical problems. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Foreign minister stranded in Mali On February 28, 2019, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas was forced to stay overnight in the capital of Mali, Bamako, after his government plane had a mechanical problem. Maas strugged off the delay, saying he had traveled all over the world without a problem. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes The "Konrad Adenauer" strikes back with a burst tire On April 1, 2019, the "Konrad Adenauer" hit back after a four-month overhaul. The ageing Airbus behaved badly on its first outing after its forced hiatus. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas was on board when one of the tire's burst upon landing in New York. The plane had to be towed to a parking space, with the delay forcing Maas to miss an appointment at the UN Security Council. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Crash landing Also in April 2019, a Bombardier Global 5000 was severely damaged in an emergency landing after problems during a test flight. Pilots lost control of the plane shortly after take off and when attempting to land, where it jolted off the runway. The flight was a test flight after weeks of maintenance on the aircraft. Grounded: Problems with Germany's government planes Maas delayed again In May, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas was delayed for a third time after engine trouble struck the Bundeswehr A321 he was travelling on for his first trip to Bulgaria. The plane's pilot blamed the failure of an auxiliary turbine, which supplies compressed air to the plane's engines, for the tardiness.

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rs/sms (dpa, Reuters, AFP)

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