Radio and transmitting equipment that stood on a 30m-high tower at the airport here was stolen at the weekend by suspected scrap-metal thieves.

One of eight transmission towers at the airport was pulled over on Sunday to reach the equipment that contains a lot of copper. The thieves escaped in an airport tractor.

The transmission towers, which are within a 4km radius from the airport, help incoming aircraft to land safely on one of the two runways by sending radio signals from the airport to the aircraft.

The robbery brought the airport’s security, which will have to operate in heavy traffic during the Soccer World Cup in 2010, under scrutiny.