IAF jets scrambled after 'bomb threat' on Iranian plane; turns out to be a hoax

Indian Air Force fighter jets on Monday escorted an Iranian Mahan Air plane that was passing through the country's airspace on way to Guangzhou in China after receiving a bomb alert. Tehran later asked Indian authorities to disregard the bomb scare.

The IAF's Su-30MKI fighter jets shadowed the plane till it left the Indian airspace.

The pilots of the Mahan Air plane had chosen to continue flying towards Guangzhou despite Indian authorities granting permission to the plane to land in Jaipur or Chandigarh following inputs from Lahore's air traffic control (ATC) about a possible bomb on the flight.


The plane was moving towards Delhi airspace when its pilots were informed about the threat, sources said.

"On October 3, 2022, intimation was received of a bomb scare on an airline bearing Iranian registration, when it was transiting through Indian airspace," an IAF official said. "IAF fighter aircraft were scrambled, which followed the aircraft at a safe distance."

According to the official, the aircraft was offered the option to land in Jaipur or Chandigarh. However, the pilots declared their unwillingness to divert to either of the two airports. After a while, intimation was received from Tehran to disregard the bomb scare, following which the aircraft continued on its journey.

"All actions were taken by IAF as per the laid down procedure, jointly with Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). The aircraft was under close radar surveillance by the Air Force throughout the Indian airspace," official said.

According to Flightradar24, the Mahan Air flight W581 was in the Delhi-Jaipur airspace briefly before making its way out of India.

In a statement on Twitter, Mahan Air said the Airbus A340 aircraft, which has a capacity of between 320 and 475 passengers, landed safely and on time in Guangzhou, and that the bomb threat was a hoax.