More than a dozen flights that operated between different airports in Europe have been the subject in recent hours of various bomb threats. Among them are three routes that departed from Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport or had the Spanish capital as their destination point, which has forced three planes to be diverted.
At the beginning of the day, a flight covering the route between Ireland and Italy had to be redirected to an air base located in northern France, as confirmed to Europa Press by both the office of the French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, and the airline Aer Lingus, responsible for the operation.
In the hours that followed, three flights of the Irish company Ryanair bound for Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, were involved, one of them coming from Madrid. This was communicated by the Bulgarian Ministry of the Interior, as reported by the news portal Novinite, while the airline has not yet issued any comment.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Defence has detailed in a note that Air Force fighters were deployed to escort the aircraft after receiving “bomb threats.” It specified that two aircraft landed in Sofia and the third was diverted to Plovdiv Airport.
Two Iberia flights connecting the Italian cities of Milan and Rome with Madrid have also been affected, as the company itself told Europa Press. The airline stated that “two of its planes received a threat of explosives this morning that turned out to be false alarms.”
“The alerts were sent to Madrid Barajas Airport and the commanders of both flights were informed, who proceeded to land in Madrid with complete normality around 10:00 a.m.,” Iberia explained, adding that “the disembarkation of the passengers was carried out without incidents, following the established security protocols.”
Later, a spokesperson for LOT Polish Airlines indicated to Europa Press that two of its connections from Warsaw with the capitals of France and Belgium, Paris and Brussels, respectively, were the subject of “potential security threats,” which led to the “immediate” activation of “appropriate security measures, according to the procedures established.”
In relation to flight LO331 to Paris, the spokesperson has detailed that "the aircraft was stopped during taxiing and directed to a designated parking position." "Both the aircraft and all luggage underwent a security inspection by the relevant authorities," he added, stressing that "no dangerous objects were found" and that "the flight will continue after an aircraft change has been made."
With regard to flight LO235 to Brussels, "security checks on board" were carried out by the crew, without locating "suspicious objects." "The aircraft landed at Brussels Airport, where the relevant authorities carried out an additional security inspection. This inspection also confirmed that no dangerous or suspicious objects were found," he concluded.
From Brussels Airport, a spokesperson has confirmed to Europa Press the existence of a "suspicious report" about this flight and has specified that the investigation corresponds to the Police. "As a result of its investigation, no additional measures have been required for this flight. The aircraft landed safely and has already taken off again," she emphasized.
Impact on Wizz Air and Finnair flights
The Hungarian airline Wizz Air has reported in a statement sent to Europa Press that one of its flights between Milan and Warsaw had to divert to Vienna due to "a bomb threat during the flight." The company explained that "the diversion was carried out in accordance with the established security protocols and procedures, giving the highest priority to the safety of passengers and crew."
It also recalled that "this incident occurs amid a series of similar bomb threats that have affected several airlines across Europe in recent days. Wizz Air is not the only airline affected, as other companies have also received threats that have led to flight diversions and security checks."
In this line, the company stressed that "it is fully cooperating with the relevant authorities and is taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of all people on board." "The safety of our passengers and our crew remains our top priority," it underlined.
Among the flights affected are also two connections of the Finnish company Finnair between Helsinki and the capitals of Italy and Austria, Rome and Vienna, respectively —the second operated by Jettime—, which received "bomb threats that turned out to be unfounded or false".
"Both flights landed without incident at their destinations and the passengers have already disembarked from the aircraft," a Finnair spokesperson told Europa Press, pointing out that the Italian authorities "have found nothing out of the ordinary" on the plane —with 144 passengers and seven crew members—, which subsequently began its return to Helsinki.
The same spokesperson explained that, in the case of the aircraft that arrived in Vienna —with 177 passengers and six crew members—, the screening work "is underway," although for the moment "no findings have been made." "The plane should return to air traffic (normal) once the inspection is completed," he said.
"We have a clear procedure that we follow in this type of situation and, in addition, we work in close collaboration with the authorities," he added. "Unfortunately, air traffic is sometimes exposed to threats; such is the case of what happened this week, when other airlines in Europe also faced false bomb threats. In general, these threats are baseless," he specified.
"Aviation safety is our top priority," the Finnair spokesperson insisted. "We take any possible threat very seriously, we assess each situation in detail, and we collaborate with the local authorities," he concluded.
Lastly, the Police of the Czech Republic has communicated on social media that four flights bound for Prague also received threats, although all landed without problems and the bomb disposal teams did not locate "anything suspicious" on the aircraft.
This spike in alerts occurs two days after seven European flights registered false bomb threats, which forced the authorities of Spain, Poland, Italy and Bulgaria to activate their security devices. In the Spanish case, the Murcia airport activated its protocols in response to an alert on a Ryanair aircraft coming from the British city of Manchester.