New bomb threats bring more disruption to flights across Europe

Around a dozen flights across Europe were hit by bomb threats on Thursday, triggering diversions, fighter jet escorts and emergency landings. No explosives were found on any of the aircraft, but the wave of alerts added to a week of travel chaos.

Diversions and escorts

An Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Rome was rerouted to an airfield west of Paris after a suspected bomb threat. French military aircraft escorted the plane to Evreux, where 151 passengers and six crew were moved to safety. The French air force said it dispatched planes “as soon as the threat was reported.”

Bulgaria saw three aircraft request emergency landings in Sofia following bomb threats. The interior minister told local media that planes from Copenhagen and Madrid had landed safely. Transport officials said inspections found no issues.

Four airplanes heading to Prague received threats, but pyrotechnic checks came back negative. Czech police said the investigation had been taken over by the National Centre against Terrorism, Extremism and Cybercrime. “Currently no further information can be provided,” police said on X.

In Belgium, a LOT Polish Airlines flight from Warsaw to Brussels landed without incident after a security warning. The crew conducted an onboard inspection and found nothing suspicious. Airport spokespeople said no additional security measures were necessary. A Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw was diverted to Vienna after what the airline called a hoax bomb threat. And a Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome was escorted by a fighter jet and checked by bomb disposal experts after a hoax alert.

Wider context

Earlier in the week, several European flights were targeted by bomb threats, leading to emergency searches and a brief shutdown at a Warsaw-area airport. At least seven flights and a cruise ship were affected on Tuesday, but no devices were found. Al Jazeera’s Frances Read noted there is no indication who is behind the threats. But she pointed to a wider context of geopolitical tension, including cyberattacks on infrastructure and drone incursions. Germany blamed Russia for a failed drone attack on Leipzig airport in August. There is no evidence linking the recent bomb threats to those attacks, Read said, but “that is realistically what European governments will be looking at.”