Stray dogs have earlier disrupted several flights at Goa Airport. (File)
The pilot of an AirAsia India flight from Goa to Delhi had to abort take-off moments before the plane's departure today after a dog strayed into the runway, a senior airport official said.
The flight took off about an hour later after the dog was removed from the runway, news agency PTI reported quoting the official.
"A stray dog was spotted on the runway and Goa Air Traffic Control cancelled the takeoff clearance to the scheduled flight between Goa and New Delhi. The aircraft had just commenced its takeoff roll," the airline was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
The AirAsia India Flight I5778, was scheduled to take off from Goa airport at 8.25 am today.
Commercial airline companies operate their planes from the civil enclave of INS Hansa, an Indian Naval air station near Dabolim in Goa. The Navy also tweeted about the incident.
"When AirAsia flight 778 was rolling for take-off at Goa airport, ATC spotted a dog entering runway and immediately informed pilot who aborted take-off. The flight departed after additional technical checks, they said.
Stray dogs have earlier disrupted several flights at Goa Airport. The Navy said that it has helped relocated 60 dogs since mid-August.
Last month, stray dogs at the Goa airport had prompted Air India pilots to abort an early morning plane landing. The pilot was "seconds away" from landing the plane, when he "went full throttle" and delayed landing for about 15 minutes, until the coast was clear, a passenger had said.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)