A parachute mishap almost cost the life of a Greek army airborne commando on Wednesday, with the man dangling outside a C-130 transport plane on a four-and-a-half line for some four minutes.

With a military C-130 aircraft the Prime Minister travelled to Riga, Latvia, since the three VIP government aircraft, both Embraer and the Gulfstream, are grounded, as there are no spare parts.

Hellenic Air Force C-130 transport aircraft became the lifeline to safety of an 8 hour old baby and a pregnant woman that needed immediate transfer to central hospitals.