News from EUROCONTROL’s aviation safety knowledge base SKYbrary
You may have read that the Northwest flight that sailed past its destination recently and was out of communications with ATC for quite a long time was about to be intercepted by fighters… In the distant past, such interceptions were fairly rare except in the communist parts of the world and the most notorious case was the shooting down of a Korean 747 by the Russians. Since the events of 9/11 military interception of aircraft not responding to calls from ATC has become fairly commonplace. Because of the security issues involved, the hazards associated with interceptions have increased substantially… those fighters do mean business and you better know what this is about or else…
Aircraft without harmful intent have nothing to fear of course but it is essential that the flight crew know exactly what to expect when intercepted and they must also be familiar with the signals used by the military aircraft. Knowing how to respond is also essential.
The SKYbrary can help you to refresh your knowledge of military interception signalling. Read their material on the subject here.