At Least 27 Flights Across Europe Hit by Bomb Threats, Forcing Diversions and Military Escorts

PARIS — Bomb threats disrupted at least 27 passenger flights across Europe on Thursday, forcing diversions, fighter jet escorts and security searches at airports from France to Bulgaria, according to Reuters. No explosives were found on any of the aircraft, officials said.

The threats hit flights operated by Aer Lingus, Ryanair, Finnair, Wizz Air, LOT Polish Airlines, easyJet, Aegean Airlines, Iberia, Air Europa and Air Serbia, among others. Britain’s transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, called them “malicious hoax threats.”

A Dublin flight diverted to a French air base

The first incident of the day involved Aer Lingus flight EI402 from Dublin to Rome. The Airbus A320 was diverted to Évreux-Fauville Air Base in France, about 100 km west of Paris, after a bomb threat was reported. France’s air force sent military aircraft to escort the jet, which landed safely. All 151 passengers and six crew members were safe, and bomb disposal teams examined the aircraft.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s office said fighter jets were sent after the pilot “didn’t cooperate as expected with the authorities.” It gave no further explanation. French aviation security authorities opened an investigation, and the pilot and co-pilot were questioned, according to the Associated Press.

A Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome was escorted by Italian fighter jets after a threat was sent by email, the Italian air force said. Croatia’s defense ministry said one of its fighter planes first intercepted the jet in Croatian airspace before handing it off to the Italians. Finnair said both of its targeted flights, including a second service from Helsinki to Vienna operated by Jettime, “faced unfounded hoax bomb scares” and landed safely.

Three Ryanair flights bound for Sofia

Three Ryanair flights bound for Sofia, Bulgaria, received military escorts and made emergency landings after bomb threats, officials said. Flights from Copenhagen and Madrid landed safely in Sofia, while a flight from London Stansted was diverted to Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second-largest city. Bulgarian fighter jets escorted the aircraft, and security checks found nothing suspicious.

Czech police said four aircraft heading to Prague received bomb threats and were searched after landing. Nothing was found. Police said they took precautions even though they rated the threats as low in credibility.

A LOT Polish Airlines flight from Warsaw to Brussels landed at its destination, where inspections found no hazardous items, the airline said. A second LOT flight, from Warsaw to Paris, was stopped while taxiing and moved to a stand for checks. No dangerous items were found, and passengers continued on another aircraft.

A Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw diverted to Vienna after a threat during the flight. A second Wizz Air flight, from Milan to Bucharest, landed in Bucharest, where its 182 passengers and seven crew members were evacuated and no bomb was found. Romania’s intelligence service said a crisis cell had been set up at the airport. An Air Serbia flight from Belgrade to Bucharest was also targeted; checks found the threat was a hoax, and the plane returned to service.

Officials say it is too early to say if the threats are linked

An email containing the threat to Rome-bound planes was sent on behalf of a group that described itself as anti-feminist, according to a copy provided by an airport official and reviewed by the Associated Press. An official from another European airport said a threat there also came from a group calling itself anti-feminist and used some of the same language. It was not clear if the same group sent both threats.

European Union Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas told reporters in Dublin that it was “too early to draw conclusions on whether the reported incidents are linked.” He said national investigations were still open and that an EU information-sharing system on aviation security had been switched on.

Thursday’s wave followed similar threats earlier in the week. At least seven flights were targeted on Tuesday, and a Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Sofia was diverted to Budapest on Monday, with Hungarian Gripen fighter jets scrambled to escort it. No explosive devices were found in any of those cases.

Each disruption can cost an airline as much as $250,000, according to Philip Baum, a visiting professor of aviation security at Coventry University in England, because crews can run out of legal flying hours, replacement crews are needed and passengers miss connections. Military escorts add costs that fall on governments, he said.

Reporting based on coverage by the Associated Press and Reuters.