Travellers flying out of Indian airports are being warned of longer waiting times after all airports were put on high alert following a reported threat to hijack an Air India aircraft.
Aviation security has been stepped up after a threat was made to the AI Operation Control Centre at Mumbai stating a plane would be hijacked and flown to Pakistan.
It has been classified as a ‘non-specific’ threat but is being taken seriously, an aviation official told the local media.
The official said: "Since it has not given details of any particular flight that may be targeted, we presume it can apply to any Air India flight anywhere in the country."
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which manages security at all airports, was ordered to beef up security measures.
This will result in tighter screening of passengers and staff and extra random screening at the main passenger and cargo terminals as well as airside work areas.
Security checks on vehicles are being stepped up to combat car bombings.
The measures will apply to all airports but will likely focus on main hubs such as Mumbai.
In a separate incident yesterday, a flight to Dubai was diverted after an alleged hijacker tried to storm the cockpit.
