Panic on the train to Vienna: The train passengers heard Hitler's speech in the announcement – and were shocked

Passengers on an intercity train in Austria were startled during their journey yesterday (Sunday) when a recording of a speech by Adolf Hitler was played over the public address system, the BBC reported today.

Instead of the usual announcements, chants of the crowd shouting "Heil Hitler" and "Zig Heil" could be heard over the train's loudspeaker system. The train operator stated that there have been several such incidents in recent days. A passenger on the Bregenz-Vienna line told the BBC that everyone on the train was "absolutely shocked".

David Steigmüller, a member of parliament from the Green Party, said that Hitler's speech was played over the loudspeakers shortly before the train, ÖBB Railjet 661, arrived in Vienna. "We heard two parts," he said. "First there was 30 seconds of Hitler's speech, then I heard 'Zig Heil'." Stiegmuller said the train crew was unable to stop the recording and was unable to read their own announcements. "One crew member was really upset," he added.

Austrian Railways (OeBB) said: "We distance ourselves from the content. We assume that the recordings were played by people who were on the train through the intercom system. We reported this to the police."

Steigmüller added that he received a complaint email from a person who was on the train with an elderly woman, a concentration camp survivor. "She was crying," he said. According to him, another passenger said that in other countries technical problems are air conditioning that breaks down, but in Austria "the technical problem is Hitler".