What is the Renegade code and when is the protocol activated

The last time the renegade protocol was activated in our country was with the Helios tragedy, when after an agonizing flight the aircraft was out of control, escorted by an F-16, and finally crashed in Grammatiko, killing its passengers and crew.

What is the protocol followed in these cases involving, among other things, even shooting down the aircraft.

Renegade, a word no civilian airline pilot wants to hear.

A word that in the language of Air Force pilots means an alert for a possible hijacking that even includes the possibility of shooting down an aircraft full of civilians.

The Renegade protocol means that you are informed as the captain of the aircraft that there is a threat or the aircraft has already been hijacked, explains Grigoris Konstandellos, Governor of Civil Aviation.

The Renegade Protocol is the procedure followed worldwide after September 11, 2000 and the events at the Twin Towers.

It provides for the return of the aircraft to the airport of departure escorted by combat aircraft by a flight exclusively over sea or over uninhabited territory.

This as there is a chance that air force pilots will receive a shoot down order.

An order from which the pilots of the Greek Air Force took a breath in the case of Helios.

As Konstantinos Iatridis, Flight Chief and Defense Analyst explains, with the Helios precisely because it was unguided and there was a chance that it would run out of fuel and fall in a residential area, specifically in Athens, it meant Renagade.

When it is determined that something is wrong with an aircraft, two aircraft are immediately ordered to take off.

In Greece a Renegade protocol when activated means an alert at the airports of Limnos, Skyros, Aghialos, Tanagra or Souda, depending on the area where the aircraft that has been deemed a threat is located.

As explained by Evangelos Georgousis, Vice-Captain, Flight EA, they are the surveillance aircraft used for any dangerous trail that appears in the Athens FIR and does not listen to the rules.

The two fighters approach the civilian and are armed with air-to-air missiles.

One stays behind to get an overall picture of the situation. The second approaches and does a close visual inspection of the interior of the aircraft.

It is the pilot of this fighter who will take over the coordination with the crew if this is possible.

There is always the worst case scenario in the back of fighter pilots’ minds. That is, when the civil aircraft has either been seized or lost control.

The belligerents call upon the captain to follow their instructions.

If he doesn’t respond or if there are democrats who refuse to comply then they get knockdown positions.

Pilots await orders.

The order to demolish comes only from the Prime Minister himself.

In Greece, it is not the first time that the Renegade protocol has been activated.

Apart from the case of Helios there were other aircraft that initially looked suspicious and fighters had to be raised to escort them fortunately as in the case of the Emirates aircraft there was a happy ending.

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