- AN-2 plane landed in Hungarian field after flying from Ukraine on Monday night
- An off-duty policeman heard the plane landing and alerted his colleagues
- Officers chased down migrants with dogs and thermal cameras in dead of night
- They arrested eight Vietnamese and three Afghan migrants for illegal entry
A people-smuggling probe has been launched after a 1940s plane packed with Vietnamese and Afghanistan migrants landed in a Hungarian field in the dead of night.
The daring bid to enter the EU from the skies was foiled by an off-duty policeman who heard the AN-2 plane pass above his house on Monday and raised the alarm.
Officers rushed to the scene and found the plane, which had set off from Ukraine, abandoned in a snow-topped field.
Police officers survey an Ukranian-registered AN-2 light aircraft near Kallosemjen, Hungary
A people-smuggling probe has been launched after a 1940s plane packed with Vietnamese and Afghanistan migrants landed in a Hungarian field in the dead of night
The daring bid to enter Europe from the skies was foiled by an off-duty policeman who heard the plane pass above his house and raised the alarm on Monday
Officers rushed to the scene and found the plane, which had set off from Ukraine, abandoned in a field
With the help of police dogs and thermal cameras they soon found 11 migrants on the run
With the help of police dogs and thermal cameras, they soon found 11 migrants on the run.
Police arrested eight Vietnamese and three Afghan nationals on suspicion of illegally entering Hungary in the border town of Kallosemjen.
It comes as Britain submitted to French demands for another £45million to stop migrants sneaking across the Channel.
UK taxpayers will foot the bill for extra measures to target stowaways using cross-Channel lorries, trains and ferries.
Police arrested eight Vietnamese and three Afghan nationals on suspicion of illegally entering Hungary in the border town of Kallosemjen
A police car in the field where the plane landed in the snowy border region on Hungary
A police van alongside the AN-2 light aircraft near the border between Hungary and Ukraine
French president Emmanuel Macron has vowed to stop Calais being a ‘back door to Britain’ – as long the UK stumps up more cash.
The £45million will pay for security fencing, carbon dioxide detectors, heartbeat monitors and scanners to find stowaways.
Britain has already spent around £167million over the past four years on security at Calais and other ports along the Channel. Under ‘juxtaposed controls’, the UK’s border is effectively on French soil.
THE AN-2 LIGHT AIRCRAFT
The An-2 light aircraft is a Soviet mass-produced single-engine biplane utility/agricultural aircraft designed and manufactured by the Antonov Design Bureau beginning in 1946.
Its remarkable durability, high lifting power, and ability to take off and land from poor runways have given it a long service life.
The An-2 was produced up to 2001 and remains in service with military and civilian operators around the world.
The An-2 light aircraft is a Soviet mass-produced single-engine biplane