A SpiceJet flight travelling from New Delhi to Kabul was intercepted by two Pakistani F-16s on September 23 while over Pakistani airspace, according to an ANI report.
The flight, SG-21, had 120 passengers on board when two F-16s flanked it. ANI reported a passenger saying that the fighter-jet’s pilot signalled to the SpiceJet pilot to lower his altitude.
The incident took place after Pakistani Air Traffic Control (ATC) mixed up the call-sign for SpiceJet (SG) with that of the Indian Army (IA). F-16s were launched after the ATC reported that an Indian Army plane may have been over Pakistani airspace.
At the time, Pakistani airspace was open to Indian flights, after months of tension between the two sides following the Balakot strikes. ANI reported that the SpiceJet captain had told the F-16 pilots, "This is SpiceJet, Indian commercial aircraft, which carries passengers and is going to Kabul as per schedule."
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), however, reported that the confusion was cleared up and that the Pakistani fighters escorted the passenger plane until it exited their country’s airspace. Passengers were asked to close their windows and maintain silence throughout the incident, ANI reported.
The flight was delayed for five hours once it landed in Kabul, as Pakistani embassy officials gathered the paperwork required to clear the incident.
In September, Pakistan had denied permission for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's plane to cross over Pakistani airspace while enroute to Germany.
Pakistan had earlier closed its airspace to India for a few months following the Indian Air Force strike on Balakot. Though the restrictions were later lifted, discussions took place in September over whether airspace would be closed to Indian flights again, following India's move to remove special status for Kashmir.
