An Air India plane’s fuselage was damaged when its pilot decided to immediately lift the aircraft to avoid hitting a person and a jeep that had suddenly come on the Pune airport runway during takeoff, an official with aviation regulator DGCA said.

The incident occurred when the A321 aircraft took off on Saturday morning.

The plane landed at Delhi airport safely, the official said.

“During takeoff roll while at 120 knots speed, crew saw a jeep and a person on the runway, to avoid conflict they did early rotation. The aircraft has safely landed at Delhi,” the official said, adding that Air India has been advised to remove the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) for analysis.

Another DGCA official aware of preliminary investigations into the incident said: “The aircraft has been withdrawn from service for investigation. Air India has been advised to coordinate with the Pune ATC (air traffic control) also to find out any marking on the runway.”

An Air India spokesperson said: “The A321 aircraft that was scheduled to operate AI 825 to Srinagar was observed to have certain marks towards the empennage area. This aircraft had arrived from Pune…. The aircraft has been withdrawn for detailed investigation.”