Drones or unidentified unmanned aerial vehicles were found in the airspace, prompting an order to cease aircraft operations at Bir Tikendrajit International Airport in Imphal. According to sources who spoke with India Today, the aerial vehicles have been spotted in the area since Sunday around 2:30 pm. After more than three hours, services returned to normal.
Some arriving flights redirected to other locations after turning back from Imphal airspace, while some flights to and from Imphal were cancelled, according to sources.
Director of Imphal International Airport Chipemmi Keishing released a statement regarding the suspension of flight operations, stating: ‘Two flights have been diverted and three outgoing planes have been delayed due to the discovery of an unidentified flying object within Imphal controlled Airspace. Once a competent authority has granted clearance, flight operations can begin.’
An Air Traffic Control (ATC) official stated that around 2:30 pm, they received a message from the CISF stating that an unidentified flying object (UFO) had been found close to the airport. ‘The UFO was visible with bare eyes moving westwards of the airfield till 4 pm,’ claimed the officer.
The official stated that the development was communicated to the Indian Air Force Eastern Command located in Shillong.
An IndiGo aircraft travelling from Kolkata to Imphal was told to hold overhead till the CISF and SP Imphal West gave their approval. When air traffic controllers reported an unidentified flying object close to the runway, two inbound flights were diverted to Kolkatta, and three aircraft waited for orders for more than three hours.
Two IndiGo flights were rerouted: one from Kolkata to Imphal (number 6E275) and the other from Delhi to Imphal (number 6E5118) to Kolkata. Meanwhile, Air India flight AI 890 was cleared to depart Imphal for Guwahati after being delayed for more than three hours.
The three flights were requested to pause takeoff after members noticed the drones at 2:30 pm, according to air traffic control and airport technical staff. Some travellers said that they had revised their tickets as a result of the drone sightings, which led to a cancellation and delay.
The incident happened soon after the Manipur government decided to prolong the internet service ban for an additional five days, till November 23, in light of the state’s poor law and order conditions.
Following the organisation of a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ in Manipur’s hill areas to express opposition to the Meitei community’s quest for Scheduled Tribe (ST) designation, the northeastern state has been plagued by violence since May. Since the ethnic conflicts between the Kukis and Meiteis tribal tribes began on May 3, around 200 people have died.
In addition to sharing an international border with Myanmar to the east, Manipur shares borders with Nagaland, Mizoram, and Assam.
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