The Indian Ministry Of Defence has explained that the missile which landed in Pakistan had been ‘accidentally’ fired, claiming that the incident took place due to a ‘technical malfunction’.
“On 9 March 2022, in the course of routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile,” the ministry announced in a statement. “It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan.”
“The government has taken serious view and ordered a high-level court of enquiry,” the statement said, adding that the incident was ‘deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident”.
Director General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar had announced in a press conference on Thursday that a ‘super-sonic flying object’ from India had violated Pakistan’s airspace and called on the Indian charge d’affaires to explain the incident.
“It was a supersonic flying object, most probably a missile, but it was certainly unarmed,” the DG ISPR added. In just three minutes and 44 seconds, the projectile managed to travel 124 kilometres inside Pakistan’s borders.
Air Vice Marshall Tariq Zia, told the press that the projectile intersected two active airway routes, adding that several commercial airlines were flying in the area. He highlighted the loss of life which could have occurred if the projectile had struck one of these airplanes.
“If you look at the speed and height of the projectile, it was 40,000 feet high, and the airlines were between 35,000 to 42,000 feet. This could have been very detrimental to the safety of passengers”, he said.
There were no casualties reported, although civilian properties were damaged in the crash.
