On Monday morning, an Iranian passenger jet flying over Indian airspace with a final destination in China triggered an alert, prompting the Indian Air Force (IAF) to scramble fighter jets. Following clearance, the passenger jet was allowed to fly toward China. The airline, Mahan Air, issued a statement around 2.45 p.m. IST stating that the plane had landed “safely and on time.”
“IAF jets were scrambled after info was received & we were following it maintaining a safe distance as per SOPs. However, the aircraft was allowed to continue on its flight towards China after Iranian agencies asked us to disregard the threat,” an IAF official said. Sources further confirmed that the aircraft has now left the Indian airspace.
“On way from Tehran, Iran to Guangzhou in China, Mahan Air contacted Delhi airport ATC after the airline received a bomb threat for an immediate landing at Delhi. Delhi ATC suggested the aircraft to go to Jaipur but the aircraft pilot refused and left Indian airspace,” ATC sources told the agency.
According to the agency report, the aircraft was heading toward China when it entered Indian airspace, and an alert was sent to Indian authorities. The Indian Air Force pressed Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets from air bases in Punjab and Jodhpur. The nature of the threat onboard the aircraft remains unknown. However, after clearance, the aircraft was allowed to continue flying towards China.
Data from flightradar, an open-source tracking platform, revealed that the flight descended over the Delhi-Jaipur airspace before exiting Indian airspace.