Drone sighting near Amritsar airport causes panic; Air India flight returns to Delhi, Indigo diverted to Chandigarh

October 12, 2026

Amritsar: Flight operations were affected near Sri Guru Ram Dass Ji International Airport in Amritsar, Punjab, on Sunday night after reports of suspicious drone activity. As a precaution, an Air India flight was diverted back to Delhi, while Indigo and Malaysia Airlines flights were diverted.

Suspicious Drones Spotted Near Airport

According to reports, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel spotted two to three suspicious drones near the airport around 9:30 pm. Security officials were alerted and precautionary measures were taken. Flight operations were also affected for some time due to security concerns.

Air India, Indigo, and Malaysia Airlines flights affected

The incident affected three flights to Amritsar.

– Air India: Flight AI-855, coming from Delhi to Amritsar, was diverted back to Delhi.
– IndiGo: Flight 6E-5028 from Mumbai to Amritsar was diverted to Chandigarh.
– Malaysia Airlines: Flight MH-118 from Kuala Lumpur to Amritsar was diverted to Delhi.

According to reports, the IndiGo flight later departed Chandigarh for Amritsar at around 11:25 pm.

Operations normalized after 10:30 pm

According to reports, Amritsar Airport Director Anirudh Kumar Sharma stated that precautionary measures were taken and flights were rerouted after receiving information about drone activity from security personnel. Operations at the airport were reported to be normal after 10:30 pm.

It is worth noting that suspicious drone activity was also reported near Amritsar Airport on September 6th. Flight operations were disrupted, with seven flights affected. The circumstances surrounding the suspected drone activity and the incident are being investigated.