European flights: Four aircraft diverted after Tuesday bomb threats
Unplanned landings in Poland, Spain, and Bulgaria disrupted travel as authorities confirmed no devices were found on board the affected planes.
By Nia Foster ·
Passengers on four European flights faced unplanned diversions and delays on Tuesday due to a wave of bomb threats. The incidents forced aircraft to land at alternate airports and required temporary shutdowns at one Polish facility. Officials confirmed that security checks on the planes revealed no explosives.
A LOT Polish Airlines flight departed London Heathrow with a planned arrival at Warsaw-Chopin Airport. A bomb threat prompted a diversion to Warsaw-Modlin Airport. The Modlin facility closed its operations for several hours while the aircraft was inspected. Authorities reopened the airport around midday after ruling out the presence of a device.
An SAS flight traveling from Copenhagen to Warsaw also encountered a threat. The plane landed at Warsaw-Chopin Airport for a thorough security screening. The airport confirmed that no suspicious items or devices were discovered after the checks were completed.
In southern Spain, a Ryanair service from Manchester made an emergency landing at Murcia airport. The aircraft carried 114 passengers and seven crew members, all of whom disembarked upon arrival. Francisco Lucas, the Spanish government delegate for the region, stated that the Civil Guard inspected the plane and ruled out the presence of explosives. He added that the airport returned to normal operations following the inspection.
The fourth incident involved a flight from Israel that landed at Sofia airport in Bulgaria. The airline received the bomb threat via email. This event capped a day of alerts that followed a similar disruption on Monday. A Wizz Air flight from London to Sofia was diverted to Budapest airport on Monday after a separate threat. Hungarian defense minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi announced the Monday diversion in a Facebook post.
The Tuesday incidents affected travelers on the Ryanair Manchester to Murcia route, the LOT London Heathrow to Warsaw route, the SAS Copenhagen to Warsaw route, and the flight from Israel to Sofia. In every case where inspections were finalized, officials verified that the aircraft were free of explosive materials.
Source: Sky News
