Intruder military plane awaits govt clearance for take-off

Mumbai, Jun 20 (PTI) A US military cargo aircraft which
intruded into the Indian airspace and landed at the
international airport here, is awaiting government clearance
for take-off, airport officials said Saturday.

"The aircraft is awaiting clearance and will take off
once the clearance is given by the government," a Mumbai
International Airport Ltd (MIAL) spokesperson told PTI.

The aircraft has been moved to a parking bay at the cargo
terminal, he said adding, the two crew members and six
passengers are still in the plane.

The aircraft did not have air operation routing (AOR)
from the government, airport officials said adding,
investigations are on by concerned security agencies.

The AN-124 aircraft of Russian origin carrying ammunition
and eight persons on board intruded into Indian airspace and
landed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport here
late Friday night.

The aircraft, which entered the Indian airspace at around
2000 hours IST , did not have the permission to fly over the
Indian airspace, IAF PRO Wing Commander T K Singha had said.

The plane was then asked to land at the Mumbai airport
which the aircraft did at 2240 hours IST, he said.

IAF sources said the plane took off from Diego Garcia
island, a military base near Mauritius in the Indian Ocean,
and was headed to Kandahar in Afghanistan. PTI