JOIN USThe July night Jalahalli IAF station was spooked by a flickering light
Authorities are mystified by a flickering light that bounced off the compound wall of the Air Force Station in northern Bengaluru about 40 nights ago.
The initial suspicion was that the light was flashed by an unmanned aerial vehicle or drone but a 15-day police investigation found nothing.
Here’s how things unfolded
The light was first noticed by sentries/guards at the Air Force Station near the Katha Nagar railway bridge in Jalahalli West. The guards couldn’t see where the light was coming from because it was dark but they did clearly see the light flickering and bouncing off the compound wall.
The guards went looking around in search of the source of the light but couldn’t find anything. They reported the matter to the higher-ups. Curiosity soon gave way to concern because the Air Force Station is a sensitive government facility. The authorities suspected that a small drone may have been used to do a recce of the place.
The matter was reported to the Gangammanagudi police for further investigation.
Considering the gravity of the matter, night patrolmen from Gangammanagudi and Jalahalli police stations were deployed around the Air Force Station. Police hoped to spot the suspicious device again but it was never seen.
Police then dug up details of people using drone cameras in North Bengaluru and questioned them if anyone had deployed drones around the Air Force Station at night. People living in the surrounding housing colonies and apartments were also questioned whether anyone had a drone and used it illegally or whether they had seen anything suspicious. The police team and Air Force guards also extensively patrolled the surrounding area for clues. But nothing came out of it. The police called off the night operation after 15 days.
“It was a one-off incident which we couldn’t verify despite the best of our efforts,” a senior police officer conceded. “We are in constant touch with Air Force officials and are keeping watch.”
A lower-ranking police officer said the Air Force staff had filed a complaint, which was treated as a non-cognisable register (NCR) report. “We suspect that the flickering light came from an aeroplane, and the guards mistook it for a drone light because of the darkness,” the officer said.