Italian passenger plane intercepted mid-air by Soviet-era aircraft over Slovakia - STOCK image

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Two MiG-29 fighters took off from Slovakian Sliac Air Base in a bid to find the civilian vessel. According to AirLive, the Italian Airbus 320 had been flying on the Milan-Kharkov route, where it was intercepted. Reports suggest that the pilots of the civilian plane had not been returning ATC’s wishes for a response.

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Locals say that the two fighter planes had “broken the sound barrier” with “sonic booms” heard in the vicinity of Rožňava and Košice.

After communication was eventually made, the Airbus continued its journey.

The company is a low-cost airline which is headquartered in Milan.

The fighter jets are twin-engined and were designed in the Soviet Union.

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