Air India Flight Lands Safely After Hijack Alert

The pilot’s reported hijack alert lasted only a few seconds, but it was enough to send Air India flight AI-2030 off course and trigger a security response. The Boeing 787-9, travelling from Frankfurt to Delhi, landed safely in Jaipur on Wednesday morning. Reports differ on whether a bomb threat was also involved, and authorities have not confirmed what triggered the alert. ^1,2

The alert was reportedly received by Ahmedabad Air Traffic Control while the plane was in the Mumbai Flight Information Region. The pilot briefly sent code 7500, an internationally recognised signal of possible unlawful interference with an aircraft. Authorities directed the flight to Jaipur, where it was moved to an isolation bay. Security staff began checking the aircraft as passengers and crew left under supervision. Jaipur airport head Charan Singh said the flight had 306 passengers. ^1,2

Those checks are meant to find out whether there was a real danger, not to prove one had occurred. Code 7500 signals a possible hijacking or other unlawful interference, but the transmission alone confirms neither. Early accounts conflict: police were told there had been a bomb threat, while an airport source described a hijacking rumour. Another early report suggested the pilot may have sent the code by mistake. None of these explanations had been confirmed in the latest reports. ^2,5,7

The passengers landed safely, but their journey was interrupted while security teams examined the plane and agencies investigated the alert. The Anti-Terrorism Squad and local police were among the teams reported at Jaipur; the National Security Guard was said to be on standby in Delhi. Investigators, including the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, must now find out why the code was sent and what threat, if any, prompted the diversion. ^2,4,14