Leopard sighted again on Pune airport premises, forest dept cautions civil, IAF authorities

This latest sighting comes months after a leopard was sighted on the Pune airport premises in April this year prompting a search operation at the time. The forest department had at the time held meetings with the Indian Air Force authorities and asked them to exercise caution in their operational and residential enclaves.

In a press release issued on Saturday night, a forest department officer said, “On November 20, the airports authority of Pune informed the forest department that a leopard was sighted at 5.30 am and again at 7.40 pm on November 19 behind Bay Number 9 and in the vicinity of Taxi Link K4 at Pune airport. The monitoring of this leopard has already been underway for the past 15–20 days within the jurisdiction of Lohegaon village. A trap cage has already been installed for its capture, and a few camera traps have also been placed in the area.”

The press release stated, “The forest department has already conveyed to the airport authority the necessary precautionary measures to prevent the leopard from entering the restricted premises of the air force and airport. It is, therefore, essential that both these authorities immediately implement the measures suggested in order to prevent the leopard from entering these sensitive zones.”

Pune International Airport operates as a civil enclave within the Indian Air Force’s Lohegaon Air Base, sharing a single runway for both military and civilian flights. The airside operations are coordinated between the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the IAF, with designated time slots and operational spaces ensuring safe and efficient use of the runway and taxiways for both sectors.

On April 28, sighting of a leopard was reported on the premises of Pune International Airport. The forest department subsequently deployed two trap cages and seven camera traps during the night and using a dog squad identified areas where the leopard was most active. Pune airport and defence authorities had said at the time civilian and IAF flying operations were not affected in any way.

However, after days of efforts and search operation, no leopard was trapped in spite of multiple sightings on the camera traps.