A new round of bomb threats against passenger planes swept across Europe on Thursday morning, marking the second such wave this week. Many flights were forced to land unexpectedly or under escort, although none of the warnings were immediately confirmed as genuine.
No country has publicly blamed anyone for the threats. They arrive as European officials accuse Russia and Iran of carrying out what they call “hybrid attacks” and sabotage. Moscow and Tehran reject these claims and deny that any such campaign exists.
Diversions and emergency landings in several countries
Irish airline Aer Lingus said in a statement that flight EI402, travelling from Dublin to Rome, was redirected as a security precaution. It landed safely at Evreux airport, roughly 100 km (62 miles) west of Paris.
Also read: Bomb threat alerts hit two passenger planes bound for Warsaw
Bulgarian officials reported three aircraft making emergency landings in the country because of bomb threats. The interior minister said planes arriving from Copenhagen and Madrid touched down safely in Sofia, according to broadcaster bTV. A third plane from London was diverted to Plovdiv, the country’s second-largest city, local media said, while the government did not respond to requests for comment.
Czech police wrote on X that four planes heading to Prague had received threats on Thursday. Authorities were preparing for the landings, but they assessed the threats as having low credibility.
Italy, Austria and Poland among affected flight routes
Italy’s air force escorted a Finnair plane from Helsinki to its scheduled landing in Rome, a person close to the matter said. Another Finnair service from Helsinki, operated by Jettime, landed as normal in Vienna after a threat, the Finnish carrier said.
Polish airline LOT said a flight from Warsaw to Brussels landed safely after a security warning, and no suspicious items were found. A LOT flight to Paris was stopped while taxiing for take-off, and its passengers were moved to another aircraft as a precaution.
Italian media reported that a Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw had to land in Vienna because of a bomb threat. On Tuesday, at least seven flights and a cruise ship received threats, disrupting airports across the continent, though no devices were discovered.
Experts link hoax threats to supermarket cyberattacks
This week, unidentified hackers shut down refrigerators in supermarkets in several European countries. Some experts said the hoax threats could be part of a similar pattern of cheap, deniable disruption.
Eliran Almog, chief executive of aviation cybersecurity firm Cyviation, said the repeated threats could both disrupt operations and allow those responsible to observe how airlines, airports and national authorities respond.
“These aviation threats are also occurring in the same period as cyberattacks on supermarket refrigeration systems across Europe,” Almog said.
“Different essential services are experiencing disruption that carries economic costs and can undermine public confidence.”
