British Airways passenger captures terrifying moment she thought fighter jet was going to shoot down plane

A British Airways passenger has described the terrifying moment she thought a fighter jet was going to shoot down the plane.

Sabrina Fawaz, who was flying from Dubai to London with her husband, said when she spotted a fighter jet speeding near the wing she thought it was "ready to shoot us down."

Her terrifying experience happened when two Hungarian Air Force Gripens were scrambled after the plane temporarily lost communications with air traffic control as it entered Hungarian air space.

Mrs. Fawaz said the jet had mostly been blocked by the wing of the plane but at one point it ducked underneath the aircraft.

She told MailOnline Travel: "I really enjoy looking out of the window at the views. Especially the mountains when we fly over Iran.

"I was just looking out and my husband said 'look at that plane.'

"It's difficult to describe the feeling. You immediately imagine something's wrong in the plane and you're not aware of it or something's wrong on the ground.

"My mouth went dry and I went hot and cold. It was terrifying.

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Hungary is part of the British Airways flight's regular route from Dubai to London but a security alert was issued after the Boeing 777 lost contact with the ground.

Mrs. Fawaz said: "I thought it was ready to shoot us down. Usually you hear that when two fighter jets are scrambled, one is flying to the front of the plane to check that it's okay and the second one is flying behind ready to shoot it down

The terrified frequent flier told cabin crew, but they said "not to worry" as it "happens sometimes when we lose contact."

Mrs. Fawaz later uploaded footage of the jet which she took on her phone onto YouTube.

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In the footage one of the fighter jets is seen flying so close to the plane that the pilot can be seen sitting in the cockpit.

According to air safety protocols pilots must make contact with air traffic controllers on the ground when passing from one country's airspace to another.

When the BA jet failed to do so Hungarian authorities reportedly issued their highest alert and the pair of fighter jets were sent to identify the aircraft and ensure it was making safe progress.

British Airways flight intercepted by Hungarian fighter jets

The Gripens reportedly took off at 12.55pm before the BA flight made contact with ground control. The jets returned to their base at 1:21 p.m.

A BA spokesman said: "Communication was quickly restored with air traffic control and the flight landed normally at Heathrow."

There have been several similar incidents in the recent past where civilian commercial flights have inadvertently triggered high-level security alerts.

In October, passengers on board a Monarch airlines flight from Madeira to Birmingham spotted fighter jets in close proximity to the plane after it lost communication over French airspace.

Source: MSN Lifestyle