A family of black bears was shot and killed at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport earlier this month, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission officials.

Airport and game commission officials describe the action on the morning of Oct. 20 as unfortunate but necessary.

A mother bear and her three 2-year-old cubs crossed the perimeter fence of the Avoca airport, creating an immediate threat to airport customers and incoming flights, said Pennsylvania Game Commission officials.

Bill Williams, Pennsylvania Game Commission Northeast Region information and education supervisor, explained that the airport has the proper federal permits and game commission permits to shoot animals they believe may have a negative impact on the safety of the airport.

Airport Director Barry Centini did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment.

The Northeast Region of the Pennsylvania Game Commission retrieved the bodies of the bears and checked out their biological information, including age, sex and weight.

“It’s an unfortunate situation. No one likes to see this happen, but the fact is that the bears were inside of a fence where there are runways with planes taking off and coming down,” Mr. Williams said. “There was certainly an urgency to eliminate that problem as soon as possible for public safety reasons.”