Air India receives hijack call, airports put on high alert

India on Saturday put all its airports on high alert after a phone call made to Air India's Mumbai control centre threatened to hijack an aircraft. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) ordered all airlines and CISF to follow specific enhanced measures to ensure security. A telephonic message received by the station duty office, AI (Air India) AOCC (Airport Operation Control Centre) Mumbai.

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) ordered all airlines and CISF to follow specific enhanced measures to ensure security, according to an official note.

"A telephonic message received by the station duty office, AI (Air India) AOCC (Airport Operation Control Centre) Mumbai, stating information regarding a threat to Indian Airlines flight getting hijacked to Pakistan on 23.2.2019," stated the BCAS note on Saturday.

"In view of the above, APSU (Airport Security Unit)/ASG (Aviation Security Group) and all aircraft operators shall adopt the following (eight) measures with immediate effect," the note added. Both APSU and ASG are part of the Central Industrial Security Force.