Multiple flights travelling to various European destinations have reported bomb alerts, which in some cases caused the planes to be either diverted or escorted by airforce units.
An Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Rome was diverted to Normandy after a bomb alert, the French prime minister’s office said.
The plane landed safely at the Evreux military airbase, Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s office said, after the aircraft declared an in-flight emergency.
All 151 passengers and six crew members are safe and military bomb defusal teams are examining the plane.
Flight-tracking sites showed that the plane was approaching Paris when it turned sharply off its trajectory and made several loops before heading toward Evreux.
A statement by Aer Lingus said: “Aer Lingus flight EI402 from Dublin to Rome diverted to Normandy this morning as a security precaution.
“The flight landed safely and Aer Lingus will work to reaccommodate customers to their final destination as soon as possible.”
Shortly after the incident was reported, Bulgaria said three aircraft had to carry out emergency landings due to bomb threats, local media reports, citing officials.
Airplanes flying from Copenhagen and Madrid landed in Sofia, the interior minister said, according to broadcaster bTV.
A third aircraft, from London, landed in Plovdiv, local media said.
According to Italian news agency Ansa, Italian airforce units safely escorted a Finnair plane, operating a Helsinki-Rome flight, to the Italian capital after it received a bomb alert.
Polish airline LOT said a flight from Warsaw to Brussels had landed safely at its destination after a security warning, and
no suspicious items were found.
Czech Republic police reported four flights headed for Prague received bomb threats.
The force said it was working with colleagues at Prague Airport for the planes’ landing, adding it assessed the credibility of the threats as low.
“Nevertheless, we are not underestimating the threat, which is why all necessary security measures have been activated with minimal impact on passengers and airport operations,” police said.
“After landing, all aircraft will undergo pyrotechnic inspections.”
The incidents come days after at least seven flights, including two from the UK, were affected by bomb threats, which caused unplanned landings and temporary airport closures.
At the time, a UK government spokesperson said the country was well-prepared for what it described as “malicious hoax threats like those we’ve seen today”.
It is not known who was behind those threats, but Matthew Borie of Osprey Flight Solutions, which advises airlines on flight threats, said the focus on Europe means “there could be a Russian angle”.
He said: “We need to keep in mind, though, that Iranian hybrid warfare is just as active in certain pockets of Europe as well.” (Sky News)