Four Flights Across Europe Hit by Bomb Threats, No Explosives Found

The update

Polish authorities inspected two passenger planes targeted by bomb threats on Tuesday and found no explosives. A LOT flight from London Heathrow made an unscheduled landing at Warsaw-Modlin airport, which shut down before reopening around midday after passengers were evacuated. A Scandinavian Airlines flight from Copenhagen landed safely at Warsaw’s Chopin airport and was also checked. A Ryanair flight from Manchester to Murcia, Spain, landed safely and was cleared after checks, and a flight from Israel to Sofia, Bulgaria, was checked by counter-terrorism units after a threat received by email.

Why it matters

The four threats in one morning, affecting flights to three countries from the United Kingdom, Denmark and Israel, follow a Wizz Air flight from London to Sofia that was diverted to Budapest on Monday after a similar threat. Authorities said it was not immediately clear whether Tuesday’s threats were linked. Similar alerts at European airports in recent weeks have later turned out to be false, but each one forces evacuations, airport closures and security sweeps.

What to watch

Investigators will work to establish who sent the threats and whether the incidents are connected. Travellers should expect possible further disruption if more alerts are reported, while authorities in Bulgaria complete their checks and confirm whether normal operations have resumed there.

Sources

• dw.com — confirms the four flights, the Polish and Spanish clearances, and the Bulgarian checks
• theguardian.com — confirms the four affected flights, safe landings, and the Warsaw-Modlin and Murcia clearances

Related coverage

• France Opens Attempted Murder Probe After Petrol Bomb Attack Amid Europe-Wide Protests
• Congo Ebola Deaths Top 5,000 as Outbreak Spreads Across Borders
• Trump Says US Will Stop $4 Billion in Annual Funding to Israel After This Year