ROME (Diya TV) — Bomb threats disrupted flights across Europe Thursday, prompting military escorts, aircraft searches and diversions. Reuters reported at least 27 affected flights, though other reports counted more than a dozen threats on Thursday alone. Authorities found no explosives on the aircraft they inspected and have not identified who sent the messages.
The alerts followed earlier threats on Monday and Tuesday, making Thursday the third day of disruptions. Threats reached airlines and airports in several countries, but investigators have not confirmed that one person or group coordinated them. The European Union activated its aviation-security information-sharing mechanism. Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas said officials were working with affected countries and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, but it was too early to determine whether the incidents were linked.
In France, fighter jets escorted Aer Lingus Flight EI402 from Dublin to Rome to Évreux, a military airfield west of Paris. The plane landed safely; its 151 passengers and six crew members left the aircraft while a bomb squad inspected it. The airline said it would help passengers continue to Rome.
Bulgaria’s air force escorted three passenger planes after threats. Two Ryanair flights landed in Sofia, while a flight from London landed in Plovdiv. In Spain, the Civil Guard received three threat emails within 20 minutes. They named two Air Europa flights to Paris and four Iberia arrivals from Rome and Milan. Staff held or returned aircraft to their stands and evacuated passengers during searches.
Other alerts affected Copenhagen, Warsaw, Prague and Rome. Danish police searched two aircraft and said passengers and airport staff had never faced danger. In Warsaw, officials stopped a LOT flight to Paris as it taxied for takeoff and moved passengers to another plane. Czech police searched four planes at Prague airport; they found nothing suspicious. Italian fighter jets escorted a Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome, where authorities also reported no explosives.
Some emails carried misogynistic language and claimed to come from “fighters of the Male State.” Investigators have not verified that claim or established a link to the Russian ultranationalist group of the same name. No government or organization has claimed responsibility, and authorities have not publicly connected the threats to Russia, Iran or another state.
Security specialists say airlines assess each report and alert authorities when a threat warrants a search, diversion or military escort. Even a false alarm can force crews to unload passengers and baggage, delay departures and disrupt connections. Analysts have raised the possibility of a wider “hybrid” campaign because European countries have also faced cyberattacks on supermarket refrigeration systems and French blood banks. Investigators have not shown that those incidents share a source with the flight threats.
