A private plane crashed off the coast of Latvia after fighter fighters from around Europe were dispatched to pursue it.
Reportedly scheduled to land near Cologne, the aircraft instead flew over the Baltic Sea and crashed.
According to FlightRadar24 data, the Cessna 551 departed Jerez, in southern Spain, around 1.56 pm UK time.
The German news outlet Bild stated that the plane was scheduled to land at Cologne Bonn Airport but reported cabin pressure issues shortly after takeoff.
Bild said that French and Spanish fighter fighters were dispatched, but no one could be seen in the cockpit or cabin.
There was reportedly a family of three and a pilot on board.
Flight trackers indicate it was headed northeast from Paris towards Cologne, but the aircraft flew over the Baltic Sea instead.
German and Danish airplanes followed it as it flew through their airspace, but they were unable to make contact, according to Johan Wahlstrom of the Swedish Maritime Administration.
NATO jets from the Baltic Air Police mission in Estonia also joined the pursuit, according to a representative for the Lithuanian air force.
The aircraft passed near the Swedish island of Gotland at 6:37 p.m., however, FlightRadar24 indicates that it was rapidly decreasing altitude and speed.
It “disappeared from radar” and crashed in the Baltic Sea northwest of Ventspils, Latvia, according to the Swedish rescue agency.
A Lithuanian air force helicopter and naval vessels have been deployed, and a Stena Line ferry is reportedly on its way.
Austria registered the aircraft.
The Cessna 551 is a 14-meter-long, six-to-eight-passenger single-pilot jet.
