27 flights in Europe received bomb threats: fighter jets were scrambled

On Thursday, false reports spread in several European countries about bombs being placed on at least 27 passenger flights. The incidents caused some planes to change course, while others landed under the escort of fighter jets.

 

According to Reuters, this wave of incidents, recorded across an area stretching from Ireland to Bulgaria, was the second such wave of threats within a week. So far, no country has officially announced who is behind the threats.

 

In France, an Aer Lingus plane flying from Dublin to Rome was directed to a military air force base in Evro under the escort of fighter jets. Bulgarian military aviation, meanwhile, escorted three passenger planes. A flight from London to Sofia was diverted to the city of Plovdiv.

 

In Spain, threats were received against two Air Europa flights on the Madrid–Paris route and four Iberia flights arriving from Rome and Milan. At Madrid airport, the movement of some aircraft was halted, passengers were disembarked, and the aircraft were inspected.

 

At Warsaw airport in Poland, a LOT plane scheduled to fly to Paris was stopped before takeoff. At Copenhagen airport in Denmark, two planes were inspected. It was also reported that a Wizz Air flight on the Milan–Warsaw route was diverted to Vienna.

 

Aviation security expert Erik Schouten, who spoke with Reuters, emphasized that most of the countries affected by the incidents support Ukraine. In his view, these incidents should also be considered within the framework of a possible hybrid war scenario. However, so far Russia or any other state has not been officially held responsible for the threats.

 

The incidents are occurring at a time when cyberattacks against other critical infrastructure in Europe are being observed. In particular, this week unknown hackers disabled the cooling systems of supermarkets in several European countries. Blood banks in France have also been affected by cyberattacks.

 

According to Eliran Almog, head of the aviation cybersecurity company Cyviation, false threats against aircraft may be organized not only to disrupt flight operations but also to observe how airlines and government agencies respond to such situations.

 

We would recall that on Tuesday as well, false reports spread in Europe about bombs being placed on at least seven flights and one cruise ship.