Two Typhoons were launched from RAF Coningsby to intercept a Qatar Airways Boeing 777 inbound to Manchester.

The interception was pieced together from open-source flight tracking and appears to have been a Quick Reaction Alert launch rather than routine training.

The two aircraft were Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4s flying under the callsigns RIGID 11 and RIGID 12, which took off from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, the home of QRA (South).

The airliner was a Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300 flying from Doha, using the callsign QTR52N and bound for Manchester Airport. Open-source tracking indicated the 777 was not responding to air traffic control and did not begin its descent into Manchester where expected.

The UK Defence Journal understands the intercept related to an incident in which a threat was made. The nature of that threat, and whether it was assessed as credible, has not been established.

An RAF spokesperson told the UK Defence Journal:

“We can confirm that an RAF Quick Reaction Alert was launched for a Qatar Airways flight which was causing concern to civil authorities. The incident was resolved and  landed safely at Manchester Airport.”

The intercepting Typhoons squawked a transponder code in the block allocated to NATO Air Policing, used for air defence priority flights. Tracking data placed the escort over the Midlands and Yorkshire, with the Typhoons following the airliner past Manchester. One of the fighters was later seen holding in orbits over Lincolnshire on its return to base.

Qatar Airways told me:

“Qatar Airways confirms that, as a precautionary measure and in line with standard procedure, flight QR23 from Doha to Manchester was provided with an escort for part of its journey prior to landing following a security notification from UK authorities. At no point was the aircraft in any danger, and normal operations continued on board throughout.

The flight landed safely, and all passengers and crew disembarked without incident. The safety and security of our passengers and crew remain our highest priority. We thank our passengers for their understanding.”

QRA is the standing task under which armed RAF Typhoons are held at high readiness around the clock to respond to aircraft of concern in or near UK airspace. Launches are ordered for a range of reasons, most commonly the approach of unidentified aircraft or the loss of contact with a civil flight, and a communications failure by an airliner is among the more routine triggers.

Coningsby covers the southern QRA area, with RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland also holding aircraft at readiness for the northern QRA area.

CORRECTION: Article was published with QRA North and QRA South in the wrong places, that has been corrected.