IAF explains India's action when Iranian flight with 'bomb threat' was in Indian airspace

A day after the Iranian flight, which had sounded a "bomb threat" onboard over Indian airspace, Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari on Tuesday informed about the standard operating procedure followed by the Indian Air Force (IAF) during the situation. Earlier on Monday, the Air Force also issued a detailed statement on an Iranian Airlines flight that sought permission to land on Indian soil, claiming that the plane was given the option to land at Jaipur or Chandigarh.

"The primary method of interception for any aircraft which may be suspected to be having a hijack situation is to take the help of fighter aircraft which are on readiness so that we can signal it to the pilots onboard that they are being followed and that they can be destroyed,"  IAF chief VR Chaudhari was quoted by news agency ANI.

The Air Chief Marshal further elaborated on the protocol that was followed on Monday when the Iranian passenger jet was flying over the Indian airspace. He informed, "As per the UN standard operating procedure, our first response was to scramble fighter jets initially two of them from Punjab Base and thereafter another two followed this aircraft till the time it left the Indian air space."

Iranian flight was given option to land: IAF

Issuing a detailed statement on the Iranian Airlines flight that sought permission to land on Indian soil, the Indian Air Force on Monday informed that the plane was given an option to land at Jaipur or Chandigarh after being intimated about the "bomb threat" aboard. "However, the pilot showed his unwillingness to divert the plane to either of these destinations," the IAF statement mentioned.

After the Iranian authorities conveyed that the bomb threat should be disregarded, the flight continued its onward journey to China. When it was in the Indian airspace, it was under close radar surveillance by the IAF throughout, the statement added. 

'Bomb Threat': A hoax

Hours after the bomb threat in the Mahan Air Iran-China flight onboard Indian airspace created panic, the airlines termed the threat a hoax. The airline said that the threat call was made to "disturb security and peace" amid the current international and domestic conditions.

"It seems that the design of such reports in the current international and domestic conditions was proposed in order to disturb security and peace of mind. In line with its lofty goals, which is primarily to maintain flight safety and provide good service to passengers, Mahan Airlines has made its determination even more," the airlines said in its statement. 

The Mahan airplane, which sounded a "bomb threat" onboard, finally made an emergency landing in China's Guangzhou. The flight travelled from Tehran in Iran to Guangzhou.