The runway at Pune airport was temporarily closed late on Friday night following an accident involving a Pune airliner Indian Air Force officials said. Efforts are underway to restore operations as soon as possible, the Indian Air Force said in a post on X.
The Indian Air Force confirmed the development in a social media post: “Pune runway is temporarily unavailable due to an incident involving an Indian Air Force aircraft. The flight crew is safe and there is no damage to civilian property.” She added that work is continuing to operate the runway and resume normal services.
A police officer said that an Indian Air Force plane had made a “hard landing” but refused to provide details, according to Press TI.
What happened?
According to airport officials, the accident occurred around 10:25 pm when the fighter plane’s landing gear malfunctioned during landing, blocking the runway.
Based on air traffic control information, it may take four to five hours to clear the runway and resume normal operations.
“As per IAF ATC, it will take 4 to 5 hours to clear the runway and restore normal operations,” they said.
Flights have been diverted
At least eight Pune-bound flights were diverted to multiple airports, including Surat, Goa, Navi Mumbai, Chennai and Coimbatore, where operations were disrupted, flight tracking data showed.
Passengers faced delays and rerouting while restoration work continued.
What the authorities said
Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol confirmed the temporary suspension of runway operations.
“Fortunately, the flight crew is safe and no damage was caused to civilian property. The airlines have been informed and it may take about 5 hours to restore normal runway operations,” Mohol said in a post on X.
He added: “I am in constant contact with the airport director and Air Force officials to ensure that the situation is resolved as soon as possible.”
Flights have been cancelled
According to Flightradar24 data,
Access
- IndiGo flight 6E607 at 6:35 AM from Chennai.
- IndiGo flight 6E5322 at 6:45 AM from Delhi.
- Acasa flight QP1311 from Bengaluru at 6:50 AM.
Departure
- IndiGo flight 6E391 to Bengaluru at 6:40 AM.
- IndiGo flight 6E956 to Vadodara at 7:20 AM.
- IndiGo flight 6E2375 to Delhi at 7:25 AM.
This is a developing story. More to follow.
