LAHORE - A severe security breach occurred at Bahawalpur airport when a stray dog appeared before the prime minister’s plane at the time of its landing on Friday, a CAA officer revealed.
Though Adviser to Prime Minister on Aviation Shujaat Azeem suspended the Bahawalpur airport manager immediately after the incident, the CAA officer was of the view that it was not the sole responsibility of the suspended airport manager (APM) as Airport Security Force (ASF) was equally responsible for the happening.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in Lodhran district on Friday to distribute cheques among farmers under the Kissan Package. On this occasion, he also announced Rs 2.5 billion development package for the district.
Another CAA officer, seeking anonymity, said, “If a stray dog can enter the airport’s most sensitive area and appeared before the plane of the prime minister, a terrorist can also do so.”
As the plane landed at the Bahawalpur airport, all of a sudden, a stray dog appeared before it.
The pilot applied emergency brakes to control the plane.
The entrance of a dog into the runway of any airport is a very alarming matter, said an ASF officer. He said terrorist groups have been using camels, cows and donkeys in Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries to carry out suicide attacks. The same can be done here with the help of dogs, he added.
A senior PIA officer said cargo and catering entrances were not properly guarded by ASF due to which any animal or person could easily enter the runway.
Shujaat Azeem, on the direction of the prime minister, ordered an inquiry into the incident after suspending Bahawalpur Airport Manager Ghazanfar Shah. A senior officer of CAA said, “Had pilot not controlled the situation, the plane might have met an accident.”