European Air Travel Disrupted by Dozens of Bomb Hoaxes
Dozens of bomb hoaxes disrupt European air travel as flights are diverted and inspected.
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European air traffic has been once again disrupted by a series of bomb hoaxes, with multiple flights diverted, grounded, and subjected to security searches. The incidents, which have occurred over the past two days, have affected a wide range of destinations across the continent.
Flights Diverted and Inspected
On Thursday, an Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Rome was intercepted by a Rafale fighter jet and escorted to a French military base near Paris for investigation following a bomb threat. The flight, carrying 151 passengers and six crew members, was flying over Paris when the threat was reported, according to air tracking data. This incident is part of a broader wave of malicious disruptions that have affected at least 18 flights to airports in Italy, Bulgaria, Czechia, Spain, Belgium, Poland, Austria, and Romania.
Additional flights have been inspected at British airports after bomb threats were made, with the number of affected aircraft continuing to rise. The disruptions bear similarities to the incidents that occurred on Tuesday, where bomb scares led to the grounding of several flights and thorough security checks, though no explosives were found in any of the inspections.
Investigations and No Accusations
European Union transport commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas has stated that investigations are ongoing, but no accusations have been made against any individuals or groups. He emphasized that it is too early to determine whether the incidents are linked. The countries most affected in both waves of hoaxes include Poland, Bulgaria, Italy, and Spain, with a core group of nations experiencing the majority of the disruptions.
France’s Le Figaro reported a particularly dramatic incident on Thursday morning, when the Aer Lingus flight was intercepted by a fighter jet. The threat was communicated via email, as was the case with many of the incidents on Tuesday. The European Union is now working to determine the source of these coordinated threats, which continue to cause significant disruptions to air travel.
Source: Breitbart