Suspected drone-like objects were spotted near Sri Guru Ram Das ji International Airport in Amritsar late on Sunday night. The sighting triggered a major security alert, and Air Traffic Control suspended operations at the airport from 9:50 to 11: 15 am.
Anirudh Sharma, who holds additional charge of Airport Director, confirmed the sightings.
Following the alert, two flights arriving were diverted to Chandigarh, and five were diverted to Delhi.
The suspected flying objects were seen outside the airport’s perimeter wall at around 10 pm, sources said.
Preliminary information said that the drones were seen approaching the airport from the direction of Rudala village. The objects hovered over the runway and other sensitive areas for a few minutes.
A joint action committee was activated and assembled in the control tower following the airport’s Standard Operating Procedure.
According to Sharma, the committee determined that the drone activity could disrupt the scheduled landings, and the airfield was closed briefly.
The flights affected included Malaysia Airlines flight MH-118, which was travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Amritsar and was diverted to Delhi.
Affected flights also included IndiGo 6E-5028 Mumbai to Amritsar, diverted to Chandigarh; IndiGo 6E-2045 Delhi to Amritsar, diverted to Chandigarh; Air India AI-479 Delhi to Amritsar, diverted to Delhi
the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Punjab Police and other central security agencies were alerted.
The security alerts were made as Amritsar is a border district and the airport’s operating area is considered a highly sensitive zone.
