The airspace above Imphal was temporarily shut down, and all flights at Bir Tikendrajit International Airport were halted for more than three hours. This action was taken by the IAF Eastern Command, which activated an air defense system in response to an unidentified flying object that was spotted over the airport on Sunday afternoon.
Taking to 'X', the IAF Eastern Command said, "IAF activated its Air Defence Response mechanism based on visual inputs from the Imphal airport. The small object was not seen thereafter."
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) announced that at 2:30 pm, the Imphal Air Traffic Control (ATC) received a call from the CISF control room informing them about an unidentified flying object (UFO) seen flying over the terminal building. The UFO then moved towards the south and remained stationary over the ATC for a while.
Thereafter, it moved southwest of the airfield and was visible till 4.05 pm and disappeared thereafter.
According to an official from the Airports Authority of India (AAI), the unidentified flying object (UFO) was seen from the ATC terrace by ATS personnel, members of the public, local police, airline staff, and CISF personnel. The object was white in color and could be seen without any aids. However, it disappeared as the evening approached.
The AAI announced that at 3:55 pm, the Eastern Command of the Indian Air Force (IAF) initiated their operations called "Mission Red & Mission Blue" by deploying fighter aircraft in the Imphal airspace. This operation lasted until 5:35 pm.
It added that normal flight operations from the airport resumed at 5.50 pm after getting clearance from the IAF.
