Jaipur: A Ukrainian cargo plane, which had breached Indian air space by taking an unauthorised route from Karachi and was forced to land at Jaipur by the Indian Air Force, has been released. Additional Commissioner of Police of Jaipur said that the airspace breach was just a minor route violation. The aircraft was intercepted by the IAF’s Sukhoi jets, after it deviated from its flight path and entered Indian air space 70 km north of an air base in the Rann of Kutch in north Gujarat. This air corridor is closed for civilian air traffic, sources said.
The aircraft had taken off from Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. Since the aircraft did not follow the authorized Air Traffic Services route and was not responding to radio calls from local agencies, IAF scrambled its jets. A cargo plane, it was found to be carrying spares. On landing, the crew was questioned by the authorities. An IAF team from a nearby base examined the cargo, which had been leased by a Ukrainian engine manufacturer ‘MotorSich’.
Hundreds of commercial and cargo flights have been affected by continuing tensions between India and Pakistan after the Pulwama terror attack and Balakot air strikes. Restrictions over Pakistani airspace have forced international airlines, including those from India, to take costly and lengthy detours.
