Bomb threats targeted at least 7 planes in Europe on Tuesday, briefly disrupting flights as the local authorities carried out security checks at several airports.
All of the planes landed safely, and officials said that no explosives had been found. It was not immediately clear who had made the threats, how they were issued or whether there was any connection between them. The threats came a day after a midair bomb scare forced a plane leaving London to make an emergency landing in Budapest.
Anxiety over airspace security is high in Europe, where a spate of hybrid warfare attacks and intimidation tactics have rattled air travel in recent months as Russia’s war against Ukraine spills over its borders. Last month, an airport in Germany briefly shut down after a false alarm about a possible hijacking on an incoming flight from Greece.
Here are where the threats were reported.
Poland: Two planes
Polish officials responded to “an alarm regarding a bomb threat on board” a plane traveling from London just before 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Warsaw Modlin Airport said in a statement on social media.
The plane landed minutes later at Modlin, which mostly serves budget airlines and is northwest of the capital, instead of the larger Warsaw Chopin Airport, its intended destination, the statement said.
Officials and pyrotechnic teams met the plane, which was carrying 181 people, and Modlin temporarily ceased operations. After noon, the bomb alert was “canceled,” the airport said.
A flight traveling from Copenhagen to Warsaw and operated by the Scandinavian airline SAS was also targeted by a threat, according to the airline.
The aircraft landed normally and the passengers disembarked, Alexandra Lindgren Kaoukji, a spokeswoman for SAS, said in an email. She said the police in Warsaw were now handling the matter.
Spain: One plane
In response to a bomb threat, the police in the southern city of Murcia inspected a plane that had traveled from Manchester, England but “ruled out the presence of explosives on the plane,” said Francisco Lucas, a local Spanish official. There were 114 passengers and seven crew members on board.
Mr. Lucas said on social media that Murcia’s international airport had resumed normal operations after the threat.
Bulgaria: Two Planes
The Bulgarian transportation ministry said that two planes targeted by bomb threats landed in Sofia, the capital, on Tuesday, but that officials found no explosive devices on board.
One plane was a Wizz Air flight coming from Italy, while the other was a Ryanair flight from Dublin, the ministry said in a statement.
Italy: Two planes
Two Ryanair flights arriving at Fiumicino Airport in Rome were disrupted by bomb scares, the airport press office said in an email. One came from Lisbon and the other flew in from Dublin.
The Roman airport authorities said that there had been “an anonymous report of a suspected bomb on board” the flight coming from Lisbon. Police bomb disposal experts assessed the situation, and the alert was lifted.
The flight from Dublin was escorted to the airport by the Italian Air Force, the airport said. After security checks, no explosives were found.
There were about 300 people on board the two flights, including passengers and crew, the airport said. “The relevant authorities are investigating the origin of the threats,” it said.
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