Hoax bomb threats disrupt at least seven flights across Europe

At least seven passenger flights across Europe were searched on Tuesday after a string of bomb threats that authorities later found to be false, according to the BBC and the Associated Press, as published by PBS NewsHour. No explosives were found and no one was hurt.

The airlines affected included Ryanair, Polish carrier LOT, Scandinavian Airlines and Wizz Air, the AP reported. The incidents prompted diversions, a temporary airport closure and, in one case, a fighter jet escort.

In Italy, two Ryanair flights to Rome's Fiumicino airport, one from Lisbon and one from Dublin, were checked by police bomb disposal teams after landing, airport sources told both outlets. The Italian Air Force said it sent two Eurofighters to intercept and escort the Dublin flight, the AP reported. According to the AP, the Lisbon threat arrived by email.

In Poland, a LOT flight from London Heathrow bound for Warsaw's Chopin Airport was diverted to Modlin Airport, which closed briefly. A Scandinavian Airlines flight from Copenhagen landed at Chopin as scheduled after a reported threat, and the airline referred the case to Polish police, the AP said.

In Spain, officials ruled out explosives on a Ryanair flight from Manchester that landed in Murcia with 121 people aboard. A passenger identified only as Sarah told BBC Radio 5 Live that she learned of the threat only after landing. "We weren't told anything during the flight," she said.

In Bulgaria, Transport Minister Georgi Peev said two planes arriving in Sofia from Bergamo and Dublin were inspected and found clear; neither was diverted. Bulgaria's border police told the BBC that a single email warned of threats against both flights. An Interior Ministry official said authorities were still working to identify the sender, the AP reported.

The threats followed a Monday incident in which a Wizz Air flight from London Luton was escorted by a Hungarian Gripen fighter to Budapest after a bomb threat. Nothing was found aboard.

Officially, no link between the incidents has been established, but the BBC reported that authorities in several countries will work together to determine whether the threats were coordinated. The UK government called them "malicious hoax threats."

Matthew Borie of Osprey Flight Solutions told the AP that possible explanations include copycat threats, a single sender, or hybrid warfare by state actors, mentioning a possible Russian or Iranian angle. Aviation security expert Paul Mason told the BBC the pattern suggested a deliberate act rather than coincidental calls.

Separately, Greek authorities evacuated the Israel-bound cruise ship Crown Iris, carrying 1,537 passengers and crew, on the island of Syros after a bomb threat. Initial searches found no explosives, both outlets reported.

Compiled by True News from reporting by PBS NewsHour and BBC News. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/743