Multiple European flights were subjected to bomb threats on Thursday, marking the second such wave of disruptions this week, according to officials.
An Aer Lingus Airbus A320 departing Dublin for Rome declared an emergency and diverted to Évreux Air Base in northern France. Separately, a Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome was escorted by Italian air force jets after a bomb threat was reported; it landed safely at its scheduled destination.
The incidents follow Tuesday’s scare, when eight European flights—including two originating from the UK—were targeted by similar threats. Searches of those aircraft yielded no explosives.
Aer Lingus confirmed that flight EI402 diverted to Normandy “as a security precaution,” stating the aircraft landed safely and that the airline would rebook passengers to Rome as quickly as possible.
Adding to the disruption, a Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw issued an emergency alert and diverted to Vienna, though authorities have not linked the diversion to a bomb threat, and the cause remains unclear.
On Tuesday, seven aircraft underwent security searches. Two UK departures were affected: a Manchester-to-Murcia flight and a London Heathrow-to-Warsaw service. Additionally, two Ryanair flights—from Dublin and Lisbon—were inspected upon landing at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport following anonymous tips; Italian police bomb disposal units cleared both aircraft after standard protocols were completed.
The UK government has characterized the recent spate of alerts as “malicious hoax threats.”
