Overview
- An Air India Airbus A321 operating flight AI479 briefly entered Pakistani airspace while executing a go‑around at Amritsar after a runway inspection following a reported bird strike, the DGCA and the airline said on June 22.
- Flight‑tracking data and regulator statements show the aircraft crossed near the Attari/Wagah border and remained over Pakistani territory for under two minutes before returning to Indian airspace.
- The crew diverted the flight back to Delhi, landed safely for refuelling and technical checks, and then later resumed and completed the Amritsar leg the same evening.
- The Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Air India have opened probes and the DGCA has taken interim action by de‑rostering or grounding the Amritsar air traffic controller and the operating crew for failing to report the event.
- The incident comes against a backdrop of a Pakistan ban on Indian‑registered aircraft since April 2025 and recent weather‑related cross‑border deviations; an unverified single report blamed a navigation‑system snag but that claim has not been corroborated by regulators or the airline.