BOMBAY: Airport authorities in Bombay on Tuesday blamed Pakistani air traffic control for giving a US civilian aircraft the wrong directions and allowing it to stray into Indian airspace.
The Boeing 757, registered by US-based Comco Corporation, was forced to land in Bombay by an Indian fighter jet late Monday as it did not have the mandatory air defence certificate, an official said. The plane was en route to Male, the capital of the Maldives, from Karachi when it entered Indian airspace.
“We have come to know that Pakistani air traffic control gave the wrong flight route, because of which the US plane strayed into Indian airspace,” Bombay Airport Director Sudhir Kumar told AFP.
“Initially the crew was told not to enter Indian airspace. However, they did and we had to advise them to land at the city airport.” Kumar said, adding that the 11 crewmembers were interrogated and had provided complete details of the incident to the intelligence bureau and civil aviation security. He denied reports that one of the crewmembers had been carrying live ammunition.
The plane carried no passengers on a surveying mission which media reports said was canvassing a possible Karachi to Male air route. Indian Civil Aviation Minister Shahnawaz Hussain told television news channel Aaj Tak that the plane had been given permission to leave India Tuesday evening, but that India would lodge a complaint with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
It was the second time in a week that a US plane violated Indian airspace. Meanwhile, Pakistan denied that it gave incorrect information to the crew of the plane. “This is yet another allegation of the Indian officials and nothing else,” said Air Marshal Arshad Sethi, Deputy Managing Director of the Civil Aviation Authority.
CHENNAI: A US Air Force plane flew at a high speed some 150 nautical miles east of Chennai for over two hours on Friday and did not respond to any radio signals, airport sources said here on Saturday.
The jet flew at a height of around 35,000 feet from 12 pm to 2 pm and the radar at the airport tracked its movement, the sources said.
They added that the plane did not respond to any radio signals of the Air Traffic Control, adding several attempts made to establish contact with the aircraft proved futile.
The jet went off the radar screen after two hours, the sources said.
Abdali ji, if there was no radio contacts how come the Indians found out that it was an American airforce jet and not a Pakistani airforce jet? I seriously suspect that the jet was wearing an American Burqa, but it was in all reality a Pakistan airforce jet…
Why wasn’t the US jet intercepted, and forced to land by our great Air Force. Are those MIGS, and Sukhois just a showpiece. Or are we afraid to challenge the Americans?
Shame on IAF. 2hrs. Thats too much time you are giving to an non AIF plane to fly in the Indian Airspace. Today it was US plane. Tomorrow even Pak may try this and nuke India.and IAF will still be trying to “contact the planes by Radio”. If the intruder planes do not respond to the radio signals, IAF planes should have brought these planes forcibly down. What is our Defense Minister doing? He should ask US Spokesperson to justify their act.
If you see a Chinese plane above Pakistan will you shoot it down. Moreoever the American aircraft was not a military one you know.
If it is Pakistan it is a different case. The same MIG shot down a Paki military Aircraft (atlantique) and 16 or so very young soldiers were sent to Allah. All smiley faces please remember this and be careful next time !
i don't think ISI does what musharraf tells them...though musharraf put his own guyz there so they won't mess up with US ...patriot guyz like general hameed gul n all are out i guess but still there is a group of ISI who knows what game is going on in pakistan n they know all about musharraf n US stuff...but i don't think they've all that power now
Oh yeah and the murderer Indian pilot who did this is now paralyzed and hopefully dead and in hell right now…so you shot down an un armed plane over Pakistani territory…wow! what guts! Why didn’t you guys reply in kind to the hospitality we extended to K. Natchiketa, and the invitation which was unfortunately refused by Ahuja? To refresh your memory they were the drivers of two Migs (wouldn’t call em pilot though)
