An IAF fighter jet took off from a secret base to intercept a Paris-Bangkok Air France flight near Amritsar on Thursday morning after the aircraft’s pilot gave wrong identity code while entering Indian airspace.
IAF radars picked up the aircraft around 6.10 am. Its location was close to southeast of Amritsar in the northern sector. The aircraft was flying at 37,000 feet.
Wrong call sign or code is a gross violation of aviation communication rules.
A senior IAF official said, “The aircraft was not in communication. Its squawk code was incorrect, so it was identified as unknown.”
A MiG fighter jet took off from a secret IAF base to force the aircraft to land. In the meantime, the aircraft started transmitting correct secondary radar response code. Air defence radar picked up the code and identified it as an Air France (AFR-164) civil airliner (A-343).
The MiG-29 fighter aircraft was then instructed to break off and return to base. A formal report of the incident has been forwarded to AAI. This is the second incident of a foreign aircraft committing serious communication violation while entering Indian airspace.
In June, a US air force aircraft strayed into Indian airspace using a wrong call sign, after which an IAF fighter jet forced it to land in Mumbai.
A senior AAI official, said: “There is no information about the IAF’s action against the aircraft. No aircraft is allowed to enter Indian airspace without identifying itself and telling the exact air defence clearance code.”
