Andorra Residents Mistake French Fighter Jet Sonic Boom for Avalanche
A supersonic shockwave from jets intercepting a distressed Turkish aircraft triggered panic in Andorra, with locals fearing an avalanche;.
Key Points
- Sonic boom occurred 11:02-11:04 as French jets from Pyrenees base flew supersonic over Ariège.
- Jets intercepted a Turkish aircraft believed in distress, creating shockwave heard in Andorra and Haute-Garonne.
- Locals in Engolasters and La Cortinada reported bang, assuming avalanche or explosive trigger.
- No injuries; France's air centre confirmed jets breaking sound barrier.
Residents in Andorra mistook a loud sonic boom from French fighter jets for an avalanche on Thursday morning.
The incident occurred around 11:02-11:04, when combat aircraft took off from a base in the Pyrenees and crossed western Ariège at supersonic speeds. Their mission involved intercepting a Turkish aircraft believed to be in distress, producing a shockwave that echoed across the region.
People in areas such as Engolasters and La Cortinada reported hearing the powerful bang, initially assuming it signalled an avalanche or the controlled explosives used to trigger one. The sound, centred near Saint-Gaudens in Haute-Garonne, prompted a surge of emergency calls from concerned citizens in both Ariège and Andorra.
France's National Air Operations Centre in Lyon-Mont Verdun later clarified that the noise "was caused by fighter jets breaking the sound barrier during a military flight." Sonic booms occur when aircraft exceed the speed of sound, creating an audible shockwave that can travel tens of kilometres.
No injuries or damage were reported, though the event caused significant alarm before authorities explained its origin.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: