Kabul airport: Close shave for SpiceJet flight during rocket attack

The rockets fired at the airport just hours after US Defence Secy James Mattis landed in Afghanistan

ANI  |  New Delhi 

Kabul airport: Close shave for SpiceJet flight during rocket attack

It was a for a operating between Kabul-Delhi when several rockets were fired close to Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul as the boarding of the flight was almost complete at the time when the incident took place.

"The boarding for SG 22 operating Kabul-Delhi was almost complete when the incident took place. Passengers and crew were safely deboarded and taken to the terminal building. There was no damage to the aircraft," said a SpiceJet spokesperson.

The rockets were fired at the airport just hours after US Defence Secretary landed in Afghanistan's capital to hold talks with President Ashraf Ghani on Wednesday.

The Taliban on Wednesday claimed responsibility for the rocket attacks near the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, saying that Defense Secretary and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg were their targets.

Hamid Karzai International Airport has located 5 km from the city centre of Kabul and serves as one of the country's largest military bases, used by the United States Armed Forces and NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

First Published: Wed, September 27 2017. 19:05 IST