Nuremberg Airport suspends all flights as fighter jets escort passenger plane amid 'in-flight emergency'

According to German newspaper Bild, a police source said authorities were considering the possibility of an emergency involving an aircraft in flight.

An airport spokesman said Eurofighter jets escorted the plane arriving from the Greek island before it landed.

The airport said: "Due to an aviation emergency, flight operations have currently been suspended. Further information will follow."

Reports indicate a possible drone sighting, with police launching an investigation into the incident.

Regional police said three pilots separately reported seeing an unidentified object, believed to have been a drone, while landing or taking off between 2am and 4am local time.

The reports prompted the airport's border police inspectorate to investigate and led to temporary interruptions to air traffic.

Officers deployed a helicopter in an attempt to locate the object, but were unable to confirm its existence.

Police also cordoned off the airport, according to German newspaper Rheinische Post.

In a statement, regional police described the incident as an “uncertain air emergency”, adding that the aircraft involved had since landed safely in Nuremberg.

German media reported that police intervened shortly before a flight from the Greek island of Corfu was due to land.