At least seven passenger flights in Europe received bomb threats on Tuesday 3 November. Aircraft bound for Warsaw, Rome, Murcia and Sofia were diverted or searched after landing, and no explosive device was found on any of them12. Nobody has claimed responsibility and no government has blamed anyone1. A day earlier, a flight to Sofia had already diverted to Budapest after a bomb threat12.

Rhys Jones of the aviation risk advisory firm Osprey Flight Solutions said that seven confirmed bomb threats against flights in a single day were exceptional. "The lack of clear target state, airline, or route indicates that general disruption to aviation operations is the aim," he told Reuters1.

Poland: a LOT flight from London diverts to Modlin

At 9:54 local time an alert was declared over a possible bomb on board a LOT Polish Airlines flight from London Heathrow to Warsaw Chopin, Warsaw Modlin Airport said34. The Boeing 737 MAX was sent to Modlin instead and landed there at 10:01 with 181 people on board34. It was taxied to a remote stand, where explosives specialists took over, and Modlin closed to all traffic34. One inbound flight diverted to Poznań as a result4.

According to airport chief executive Jacek Kowalski, explosives experts from the Polish Border Guard searched the whole cabin and the cargo hold4. LOT said nothing was found on the aircraft2. Modlin resumed flights at 11:50, and the alert was fully lifted at 12:213. LOT decided to end the flight at Modlin, return passengers' bags to them and take the passengers on to Warsaw by coach42. Every signal of a potential threat, however small, has to be treated extremely seriously, Kowalski said4.

At almost the same time, Chopin Airport received information about a potentially dangerous item on board an SAS flight from Copenhagen25. The airport started its standard procedures and closed one runway2. The aircraft landed as scheduled and the passengers disembarked52. SAS said the matter had been passed to the Polish police2. Chopin stayed open and no device was found on board1.

Italy: two Ryanair flights searched at Rome Fiumicino

Two Ryanair flights, from Lisbon and from Dublin, landed at Rome Fiumicino that morning after emails claimed there was a bomb on board26. The Italian Air Force escorted the Dublin flight until it landed12. Police bomb disposal teams then checked the aircraft, passengers, crew and baggage, and found nothing26. A source at airport operator ADR said other flights were not affected1.

Spain: Ryanair flight from Manchester evacuated at Murcia

In Spain the threat concerned a Ryanair flight from Manchester to Región de Murcia International Airport at Corvera71. Ryanair's operations control centre raised the alarm while the aircraft was still airborne72. Airport operator Aena said the aircraft landed at 10:30, on schedule, with security officers and medical staff waiting7. The services involved set up a crisis committee at the airport7. The aircraft carried 114 passengers and seven crew members8. All passengers left the aircraft and were screened by the Spanish National Police7. Guardia Civil bomb disposal specialists from Alicante searched the aircraft and found no explosives, after which the airport returned to normal operations781.

Bulgaria: two Sofia flights checked

Bulgaria's transport ministry said threats were made against a Wizz Air flight from Milan Bergamo with 176 passengers and a Ryanair flight from Dublin with more than 180 passengers12. Both landed in Sofia without diverting and were searched, and no explosives were found91. Transport Minister Georgi Peev said all protocols had been activated and there was no danger910. A flight from Israel was also named as a target earlier in the day, but the authorities later said this was not the case19.

On Monday 2 November, a Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Sofia diverted to Budapest after a bomb threat. A Hungarian Air Force Gripen escorted it to Liszt Ferenc International Airport, Hungary's defence minister said21. No threat was found on board2. On Sunday 18 October, an Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna also landed in Sofia after a bomb threat112.

What the crew does when a threat comes in mid-flight

In Murcia, Ryanair's operations control centre called the 112 emergency number while the aircraft was still airborne72; in Rome and Sofia, the threats arrived by email29. Once a threat is passed on, the workload on the flight deck increases, as the crew assesses the threat and decides how to continue the flight12. SKYbrary, the aviation safety knowledge base, says crews typically ask to stop climbing or to descend to a lower level, and to land at the nearest suitable aerodrome12. Where the aircraft lands is the commander's decision, Bulgaria's transport minister pointed out9.

SKYbrary advises controllers to clear the airspace around the aircraft, to try to keep it away from built-up areas where that does not delay it, and to allow a long final if the crew asks for one. ATC should never be the reason a go-around becomes necessary12. If the crew finds a specific suspect item, the commander may have it moved to the least-risk bomb location (LRBL), a designated spot usually next to an external door in the rear galley12.

Two earlier cases show this sequence on the radio: the ATC audio of United 2092 diverting to Pittsburgh with a suspected bomb and planning a runway evacuation, and Emirates 177 approaching Warsaw while the airport prepared to close.

After landing, the aircraft is parked away from buildings and other aircraft12. At Modlin, the aircraft went to a remote stand3. The crew may decide to evacuate on the runway, so controllers arrange extra stairs and expect delays for other traffic12. Then comes the search. In Rome, bomb disposal teams checked the aircraft, passengers, crew and baggage26. At Modlin they searched the cabin and the hold4. In Murcia the Guardia Civil searched the aircraft while police screened the passengers7. SKYbrary notes that high levels of stress are normal, even when a crew sounds calm on the radio12. See also the Delta flight evacuated at Tel Aviv in October.

Who is behind it

Who is behind the threats is not yet known. Nobody has claimed responsibility for the threats and no country has pointed to a culprit12. Bulgaria's Border Police said the threats against both Sofia flights arrived in a single email9. On the same day, an Israel-bound cruise ship was searched at the Greek island of Syros after an unknown person said an explosive device had been attached to its hull. Initial checks found nothing, and coast guard specialists were to inspect the ship further12.

The wave comes as European officials blame Russia and Iran for what they describe as hybrid attacks and sabotage, which both countries deny12. Eric Schouten, head of the aviation security group Dyami, sees it as part of a wider picture. "From railways to the food infrastructure that you see happening with the fridges being hacked and all kinds of other operations, it does fit the narrative of Russian state actors who want to disturb Europe," he told Reuters1. That is his assessment; no government has formally attributed the threats.

India saw almost a thousand hoaxes by mid-November 2024

Between January and mid-November 2024, Indian airlines received nearly a thousand hoax bomb threats, 666 of them in October alone, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol told parliament1314. Police registered 256 cases and made 12 arrests13. Mohol said the threats came from random places rather than one region14. India's aviation security regulator BCAS has a bomb threat contingency plan in place, with a threat assessment committee at every airport14.

For passengers and pilots

For the passengers from London, the trip ended at Modlin rather than at Warsaw Chopin, where they were booked to land, and they were to travel on to Warsaw by coach4. For other passengers at Modlin, the disruption was limited to delays of tens of minutes, according to Kowalski4. The EU passenger rights regulation names security risks as an example of extraordinary circumstances in which airlines' obligations can be limited or excluded15, and it also entitles passengers to care during long delays15. See also how airlines rank on handling compensation claims.

SKYbrary's guidance for controllers also describes what a bomb threat means for pilots. The crew has to assess the threat, decide how to continue the flight, usually towards the nearest suitable aerodrome, and possibly run an evacuation on the runway, with high stress as a normal reaction12. ATC supports them by clearing the airspace, keeping non-urgent calls off the frequency and giving the crew time to assess the situation12.