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Dozens of European flights diverted over bomb threats

Summarised from 8 outlets · 11 reports · Updated 5 Nov, 16:00 · Archive

At least 15 European flights were diverted or made emergency landings on Thursday following bomb threats that proved unfounded.

At least 15 European flights were diverted or forced to make emergency landings on Thursday following bomb threats that have been determined to be unfounded. The incidents marked the second wave of such threats within a week, after similar hoax alerts affected several planes on Tuesday.

Flights from across Europe were targeted, originating from cities including Copenhagen, Dublin, Helsinki, Madrid, Milan and Warsaw. Airlines affected included Aer Lingus, Ryanair, Finnair, LOT Polish Airlines and Wizz Air. An Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Rome was diverted to the Évreux military airbase in northern France, landing safely with 151 passengers and six crew members on board. A Ryanair flight from London Stansted heading to Sofia, Bulgaria was diverted to Plovdiv. Two Ryanair flights from Copenhagen and Madrid also made emergency landings in Sofia. A Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw was diverted to Vienna.

In the United Kingdom, Heathrow and Birmingham airports both received threats in the early hours of Thursday morning. Both threats were assessed as not credible and operations continued as normal at both airports. A Heathrow spokesperson confirmed the threat received was deemed not credible with no risk to passengers, colleagues or aircraft. EasyJet confirmed that flights from Newcastle and Glasgow were met by police on arrival in Prague as a precautionary measure, with passengers disembarking normally.

According to reports seen by news agencies, some of the threatening emails claimed to be from a group describing itself as anti-feminist and calling itself the 'Fighters of the Male State'. The emails threatened to 'turn the skies red' and targeted flights bound for Italy, where Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni leads the government. The signature used in these emails is identical to that of a Russian far-right, misogynistic movement that was formally labelled an extremist organisation by Moscow authorities in October 2021.

All searches and inspections of the aircraft found nothing suspicious. A Bulgarian government spokesperson confirmed that necessary inspections were carried out upon landing and no issues were identified. Czech police reported that inspections of planes heading to Prague yielded negative results and assessed the relevance of the threats as low. Finnair confirmed that two of its flights from Helsinki to Rome and Vienna faced unfounded or hoax bomb threats, with both landing safely at their destinations.

These incidents come amid broader concerns about European security. Many European officials have accused Russia of orchestrating such 'hybrid attacks' and acts of sabotage, which both Moscow and Tehran deny. The UK government stated that the country has one of the most robust aviation security systems in the world with well-tested processes for dealing with threats and malicious hoaxes. Airlines stated they would work to reaccommodate customers to their final destinations as soon as possible following the diversions.

Dozens of European flights diverted over bomb threats
Image: France 24

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In this story: Aer Lingus · Ryanair · Finnair · Dublin · Rome · Sofia · Russia · Heathrow

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log