• Squawk 7601 was introduced under Europe’s SERA rules in May 2025 as a new special-purpose transponder code.
• It signals IFR radio failure with continuation in VMC to the nearest suitable airport.
• Not all European countries have adopted 7601.

Chances are you haven’t heard of it. But as of last summer, Europe officially has introduced a new special purpose squawk code. 7601 was introduced to allegedly remove a layer of uncertainty when communications have broken down. But not all European countries agree on its usefulness. //

A trio of codes carry a special, universal meaning and are recognized globally:

7700 — General emergency

7600 — Radio communication failure

7500 — Unlawful interference

Aircraft broadcasting these codes will be flagged on Flightradar24, usually drawing a lot of attention. You can learn the ins and outs of these in our blog post about squawk codes. As of May 2025, a fourth special code has joined the list in European airspace: 7601.