Bomb threats forced more emergency flight landings across Europe on Thursday morning, the latest in a series of threats to planes in the continent.
Flights from London, Dublin, Madrid, Copenhagen and Helsinki, were among those that made emergency landings in France, Bulgaria and Belgium.
It comes after a series of bomb hoaxes earlier this week caused similar emergency landings, prompting serious concerns over the threat of information warfare in a week that has also seen cyber attacks on supermarket fridges and blood banks in Europe.
Aer Lingus flight EI402 from Dublin to Rome landed safely at Evreux airport, 100 km west of Paris, after being diverted as a security precaution, the Irish airline said in a statement.
(File photo) Aer Lingus flight parked in Dublin Airport (AFP/Getty)
Belgian media reported that an airliner forced to land at Brussels’ Zaventem airport belonged to the Polish airline LOT.
A Finnair plane from Helsinki was safely escorted to its scheduled landing in Rome by the Italian air force, a source close to the matter said.
Bulgarian officials reported three aircraft making emergency landings because of bomb threats.
Airplanes flying from Copenhagen and Madrid landed in Sofia, the interior minister said, according to broadcaster bTV. A third aircraft, from London, landed in Plovdiv, local media said.
On Tuesday, at least seven flights and a cruise ship received bomb threats, causing disruption at airports across Europe, although no devices were discovered.
A Ryanair flight (Reuters)
No country has attributed blame for the threats, but they come at a time when European officials have been blaming both Russia and Iran for what they describe as “hybrid attacks” and acts of sabotage.
Moscow and Tehran both deny any such campaign.
This week, unidentified hackers shut down fridges in supermarkets in several European countries.
Fridges and freezers were hacked, with thermostats remotely cranked up in some cases to 50C (122F), while others have been set to “defrost” mode, putting the heat to 15C rather than minus 22C.
Hundreds of shops were targeted by the overnight cyberattack, which caused millions of Euros worth of fresh and frozen food to be spoiled.
Supermarkets in Europe have been affected by a cyber attack impacting fridges and freezers (Damien Eagers/PA) (PA)
On Wednesday, blood banks in France were hit by a cyberattack – although there was no damage to blood products in the centres in question.
Investigations into the incident and equipment potentially affected are underway as authorities look at a timeline for a safe return to service for the blood banks.
Some experts said hoax bomb threats could be part of a similar pattern of low-cost, deniable disruption efforts.
Sarah Cleveland, senior director of federal strategy at cybersecurity firm ExtraHop, said the attacks open “a very real possibility that nation-states are probing how to disrupt cooling systems that sustain military bases and critical response personnel”.
She added: “These vulnerabilities are precisely why defense and intelligence agencies have repeatedly warned of hostile actors probing critical infrastructure.
“The reality is that attackers recognize just how fragile our supply chains are.”
