RAWALPINDI: The airport manager was suspended after stray dogs were spotted roaming the lounge and parking areas of the Islamabad International Airport (IIA).

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has launched a departmental inquiry against the manager.

The CAA’s bird shooter squad, however, put down three dogs and injured two, airport sources said.

The IIA manager, Asghar Faheem Khattak, was suspended by the CAA director general after news and footage of the stray dogs roaming the airport premises were aired on electronic media.

The spokesperson said the stray dogs did not bite anybody.

An airport employee, on condition of anonymity, told Dawn that he often saw stray dogs wandering on the airport premises.

He said they came from the surrounding areas in search of food in the garbage strewn around the airport canteen and often entered the lounge and parking areas.

The aviation authority has its own ‘bird shooters’ who shoot birds or animals near the runways, but last night they could not spot the dogs, he said.

A senior security official at the airport said these dogs could be a security hazard, and their entry must be checked.

Another airport employee told Dawn that stray dogs were an embarrassment as they barked at passengers and nobody was there to check them.

Published in Dawn, October 2nd, 2018