Operations at Amritsar airport were suspended for more than an hour on Sunday night after drones were spotted over the airport, forcing seven aircraft holding for landing to be diverted, officials aware of the matter said.Five of the seven diverted flights later returned to Amritsar. (X/ColRohitChaudry)IAF alerts ATC to drone activity over airfieldAccording to people aware of the matter, the airport was closed for operations at around 9.50pm after the Indian Air Force (IAF) informed the Air Traffic Control (ATC) about drone activity across the airfield.“Around seven flights thus had to be diverted, to Chandigarh and Delhi because planes scheduled to land at Amritsar were already holding near the airport area,” an Airports Authority of India (AAI) official said.Also Read: Punjab: 7 flights diverted amid drone movement; FIR registered“Two of the flights were diverted to Chandigarh and five of them were diverted to Delhi. These five included two flights each of Air India, IndiGo and one of Air India Express,” a Delhi airport official said.SOP committee assesses threat to flight operationsAs per the standard operating procedure (SOP) for drone sightings, a committee was formed to assess if the drone activity could pose a threat to aircraft movements.After assessing the situation, the committee decided to temporarily suspend the flight operations at the airport at around 9.50 pm,” the AAI official added.Another official aware of the development said, “The committee reviewed the situation around 11 pm because no more drones were seen or reported around the airport. The airport was thus cleared to resume operations at 11.15pm.”Also Read:Air India Express’ Abu Dhabi-bound flight forced to return to Kochi after engine oil warning: ‘Danger’Five of the seven diverted flights later returned to Amritsar.Passenger describes nearly two-hour ordealOne of the passengers posted on X and said, “ #Amritsar airport was apparently closed for landings for almost 2 hours tonight. Our Dubai → Amritsar flight kept circling overhead before eventually being diverted to Delhi. We’ve now landed in Delhi… and the latest update is that the same aircraft will apparently fly back to Amritsar once the airport reopens. What a night. And honestly, full credit to the Air India Express crew — they handled the whole situation incredibly calmly, kept everyone updated and never let the uncertainty turn into panic. The airport closure is a story. The crew’s handling of it deserves an appreciation post.”An airline official said that the airline had enough fuel to hold for over an hour.Also read: 3 Air India staffers among 29 under gaze in Amritsar airport human trafficking probe“The flight IX 138 was scheduled to land in Amritsar at 10.40pm. It had to be diverted to Delhi, however, it landed back in Amritsar.”The Dubai - Amritsar is one of the busiest routes for the airport. Apart from Delhi and Mumbai, the airport has regular flights between the two destinations.Meanwhile, Amritsar (rural) SSP Kanwalpreet Singh Chahal said a formal complaint was lodged by the Airport Authority this morning, following which a search operation was launched in the surrounding areas. “Preliminary inquiries revealed that a kabaddi tournament was taking place in a nearby village. We are investigating that angle as well.”