29-11-18 GAF A340 16+01 diverting into Cologne

[frank kramer]

Earlier this evening, GAF A340's 16+01 and 16+02 were seen on global.adsb-exchange flying over the Netherlands. From Bild.de: 16+01 was carrying Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel to the G20 conference in Buenos Aires. An hour and a half after take-off from Berlin, a radio problem developed and the Airbus diverted into Cologne. Due to its still considerable weight it made a hard landing; pax had to wait more than an hour for the brakes to cool. Frau Merkel now flies to Madrid tomorrow to catch a regular flight from there to Buenos Aires, as the Luftwaffe crew would have run out of flying hours when trying for a second attempt to cross the Atlantic.