Article Posted on : - Aug 28, 2009

A file photo.

NEW DELHI (BNS): The Indian Air Force’s MiG 29 fighter jets swung into action after an Air France flight entering India from Pakistan switched on the wrong Identity Friend or Foe (IFF) code over Amritsar.

“Taking prompt action after our radars detected an unknown aircraft over our territory, we scrambled two of our MiG 29 air defence fighter jets from Adampur air base to intercept the aircraft at around 0610 hours in the morning (on Thursday), as it had switched on a wrong IFF code,” The Times of India reported, quoting IAF officials here.

The French Airliner's Airbus 343 aircraft rectified the error immediately following which the mission was aborted, the officials said. “After the aircraft switched over to the right codes, it was allowed to proceed towards its destination and the IAF jets came back to its base.”

The Aircraft was on its way from Paris to Bangkok and was entering India after flying over Lahore in Pakistan, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The IFF codes are meant to help the ground-based radars automatically differentiate between friendly and enemy aircraft.

Following the 26/11 terror strikes, the IAF has been maintaining a tight vigil on the Indian borders to thwart any aerial attacks on the country.