Airlines reportedly scrambled to divert several passenger flights across Europe because of bomb threats for the second day this week on Thursday. Among the carriers that diverted flights were Wizz Air Holdings Plc and Aer Lingus.
The first diversion report came in regarding a passenger Airbus A320 aircraft flying the Dublin-Rome route. It was diverted to the Évreux air base in France’s Fauville following a bomb alert, according to a statement by the French Prime Minister’s office. The plane with 151 passengers landed safely.
The French PM’s office said the situation was being monitored closely regarding the Airbus plane that was diverted after a bomb alert, adding that 151 passengers and six crew members were safe and military bomb defusal teams were examining the plane.
The Aer Lingus Dublin-Rome flight was approaching Paris when it turned sharply off its trajectory and made several loops before heading toward Evreux, Associated Press news agency reported, citing flight tracking sites.
The prime minister’s office said that it’s following the situation in real time. No other information was immediately released.
A Wizz Air Holdings Plc aircraft flying from Milan to Warsaw on Thursday was diverted to Vienna after a threat was received during the flight, AP quoted a spokesman as saying.
A LOT Polish Airlines flight from Warsaw to Paris was stopped while taxiing and sent to a parking stand, where a security check was undertaken, Bulgarian authorities said in an emailed statement. No hazardous items were found, they said, per AP.
Three more aircraft were forced to land at Bulgarian airports over bomb threats, Reuters reported, citing local media reports on Thursday.
Two of the aircraft, flying from Copenhagen and Madrid respectively, landed in Sofia, according to broadcaster bTV, which cited the interior minister, while NOVA TV cited the transport minister. A third aircraft, from London, had landed in Plovdiv, the reports said.
Tuesday’s bomb threats
The diversion comes two days after several flights across Europe received hoax bomb threats Tuesday that prompted searches, diversions and, in one case, an escort by the Italian Air Force until landing.
The flights included Polish airline LOT, Scandinavian Airlines, Wizz Air and Ryanair, according to an Associated Press news agency. The hoax threats came a day after a plane headed for Bulgaria was diverted to Hungary after receiving a similar bomb threat while in the air. No one was injured.
About 10 European flights were targeted by the bomb threats which forced the brief closure of a Warsaw airport.
No explosives were found, despite extensive searches on the ground after the planes all took off and landed safely in different European cities just several hours apart.
Irish budget carrier Ryanair appeared to be the worst hit, with four of its flights to different destinations being targeted by the hoax bomb threats.
London’s Metropolitan police confirmed it “was made aware of threats… against four aircraft due to depart from or arrive at Heathrow Airport” Tuesday, one of Europe’s busiest air hubs.
