Rescue with hurdles: After the attempt to get Austrians trapped in Israel out of the country with a federal army ‘Hercules’ plane failed before it even started, another solution must now be found. As the “Krone” has learned, a chartered civilian plane is now ready to fly the people away at short notice.
According to information from the Federal Chancellery, about 300 people are currently waiting to leave the country for Israel. They were unable to leave on their own due to the heightened security situation – and are now pinning their hopes on the Austrian government, which had promised an evacuation.
The federal army remained on the ground
But a first rescue mission on Wednesday morning failed disastrously: the C-130 ‘Hercules’ aircraft parked especially for this purpose caught fire on the tarmac at Linz-Hörsching. The fire delayed the departure of the slow plane, which would have taken about four hours to travel to Cyprus’s Paphos airport anyway. Due to the smoke, the loading ramp of the machine on the ground had to be opened and the fire brigade arrived. According to reports, those on board also suffered from the smoke.
Charter planes should help with that
The Austrian airline AUA stopped its scheduled flights to Israel on Monday evening, but the destination can still be reached by charter. According to information from “Krone”, such a plane should now take the stranded people home. The advantage: modern aircraft fly faster, higher and can carry significantly more passengers (~300 people) than the originally intended “Hercules” (~50 people).
Those affected, please be patient
Until then, the affected Austrians will have to wait: Please be patient! One of them is the Viennese Markus Ponweiser, who had actually hoped for the repatriation flight of the Federal Army. ‘I don’t know when the flight leaves. As soon as I know about this, I will board the train to Tel Aviv,” the student said before the C130 was due to depart.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
