Hoax bomb threats disrupted at least 27 passenger flights across Europe on Thursday, forcing diversions, unplanned landings and military escorts in what was described as the second such wave this week.
The incidents stretched from Ireland to Bulgaria, with aircraft searched, passengers disembarked and some flights halted before take-off. No country has publicly blamed anyone for the threats.
In France, fighter jets were sent to intercept an Aer Lingus service travelling from Dublin to Rome after the pilot failed to co-operate with authorities as expected. The aircraft was escorted to an air force base at Evreux, although no reason was given for the pilot’s behaviour.
Bulgaria’s air force said its fighter jets escorted three airliners to the ground. Two Ryanair flights, from Copenhagen and Madrid to Sofia, landed as scheduled, while another Ryanair service from London to Sofia was diverted to Plovdiv.
Spanish authorities said they received three emailed bomb threats within 20 minutes, involving two Air Europa flights from Madrid to Paris and four inbound Iberia services from Rome and Milan.
Several aircraft at Madrid airport were stopped or returned to their stands, allowing passengers to disembark while inspections were carried out.
Flights searched and diverted across Europe
In Warsaw, a LOT flight bound for Paris was stopped while taxiing towards the runway and its passengers were moved to another aircraft. A flight from Cork was delayed by 90 minutes after a threat was received at the Irish airport.
Police in Copenhagen said two planes were searched, while Italian media reported that a Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw had been diverted to Vienna.
Two EasyJet flights from the UK, as well as services from Ireland and Greece, landed as scheduled in Prague after receiving bomb threats. Other flights that completed their journeys included Finnair’s service from Helsinki to Vienna, a LOT flight from Warsaw to Brussels, a Wizz Air flight from Milan to Bucharest and an Air Serbia service from Belgrade to Bucharest.
Italy’s ANSA news agency reported that two aircraft landed as planned in Milan. A person familiar with the matter said the Italian air force escorted a Finnair flight from Helsinki to its scheduled landing in Rome.
Fiumicino Airport in Rome said services had not been disrupted. Some passengers appeared resigned to the situation, with traveller Lucia Parga saying: “It’s more complicated with everything that’s going on but what else are we going to do? We still have to get around. So, well, we just have to deal with it as best we can.”
Another traveller, Gabriele Franzese, said: “You can’t worry too much about every piece of news. If the plane crashes, so be it. If it’s meant to happen, it’ll happen anyway.”
The threats come as officials in several European countries accuse Russia of orchestrating sabotage and so-called hybrid attacks, which are often cheap, difficult to attribute and not expected to provoke an armed response.
Denmark, Poland and Romania, all affected by Thursday’s disruption, have previously accused Russia directly. Germany has blamed Russia for an attack on Leipzig airport in August, while the UK has previously made accusations against Moscow but linked Iran to a suspected plot targeting a US air base.
Both Russian and Iranian authorities deny involvement.
Joji Waites, the British Airline Pilots’ Association’s director of flight safety, said airlines generally did not act on threats unless assessors judged them to be credible.
Eliran Almog, chief executive of aviation cybersecurity firm Cyviation, said the hoaxes could be intended both to disrupt operations and to monitor how airlines, airports and authorities respond.
