A wave of suspected hoax bomb threats targeting passenger flights has caused disruption across Europe, with at least seven aircraft diverted, grounded or searched after alerts were received.
Two services that departed from the UK were affected. A LOT Polish Airlines flight from London Heathrow to Warsaw was diverted to Warsaw-Modlin, while a Ryanair flight travelling from Manchester to Murcia in southern Spain was inspected after landing.
The incidents have not been linked, and authorities have not reported any explosives being found. They came a day after a Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Bulgaria was escorted by a fighter jet following a similar threat.
Heathrow flight diverted after security alert
The LOT flight, carrying about 118 passengers, left Heathrow bound for Warsaw-Chopin but was redirected to Modlin after airport authorities were notified of a potential security threat.
The Boeing 737 Max 8 landed safely at 10.01am local time. Security forces then checked the aircraft, while passengers underwent border control procedures before being transferred by coach to Warsaw-Chopin.
LOT later said that no suspicious items had been found during the inspection. The unloading of checked baggage was under way.
Warsaw-Modlin remained closed following the alert. Warsaw-Chopin continued operating, although one of its runways was reported to have been shut.
A separate SAS service from Copenhagen to Warsaw landed at Chopin Airport and was also searched. The airline said the aircraft had arrived safely and all passengers had disembarked.
Ryanair aircraft searched in Spain and Italy
In Spain, officials confirmed that a Ryanair flight from Manchester to Murcia had received a threat. The aircraft, carrying 121 people including crew, was examined after landing at about 10.50am.
Francisco Lucas, the Spanish Government’s delegate in the Murcia region, said security procedures had been activated. A passenger said those on board were not told about the alleged threat during the flight.
“The plane stopped quite suddenly and then we were kept on the runway for around 30 minutes,” Sarah told BBC 5 Live.
She said fire engines, police and a bomb squad arrived before passengers were ordered to leave the aircraft and escorted from the runway, leaving their belongings behind.
“We were only later told that it was an actual threat, a bomb threat to the plane itself,” she said.
At Rome’s Fiumicino Airport, bomb disposal experts searched two Ryanair aircraft after anonymous warnings. One had flown from Lisbon and the other from Dublin.
A Ryanair flight from Dublin to Sofia, carrying 185 passengers, was also searched after a bomb threat was received. Another Ryanair aircraft travelling from Dublin to Rome was accompanied by an Italian fighter jet.
In Sofia, a Wizz Air flight from Bergamo was grounded after a threat was reportedly sent by email. The aircraft was carrying 176 passengers.
Previous London-to-Bulgaria alert
The latest incidents followed the diversion of a Wizz Air Airbus A321 from London Luton to Sofia the previous day.
The aircraft turned back over Bosnia and Herzegovina after a bomb threat was received and was escorted by a Hungarian Gripen fighter jet before landing at Budapest’s Ferenc Liszt Airport.
Authorities searched the aircraft and carried out additional security measures, but Wizz Air later confirmed that nothing suspicious had been found.
