Europe must unite the actions of national authorities, airports, airlines and law enforcement agencies following a series of more than 20 bomb threats against passenger flights in a single week. European Commissioner for Transport Apostolos Tzitzikostas said there is currently insufficient evidence to conclude that the incidents are connected.
“Any threat against civilians is unacceptable,” Tzitzikostas said. According to the Associated Press, he also reported that the European information-sharing mechanism for aviation security had been activated and that national investigations were continuing.
Dozens of flights were diverted or inspected
By November 5, at least 34 flights in Europe had been affected by the threats. In some cases, aircraft were diverted, made emergency landings or were escorted by military aircraft. Inspections on board found no explosive devices, and there were no reports of injured passengers.
Those affected included flights operated by Ryanair, Aer Lingus, Wizz Air, Finnair, easyJet, Aegean Airlines, Iberia, Sky Express, Air Serbia and LOT Polish Airlines. Threats were made against aircraft linked to airports and routes in Italy, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Spain, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Finland, Austria, Denmark, Belgium, Portugal, France, Greece, Serbia and the Czech Republic.
Three Ryanair aircraft flying to Bulgaria received threats. Two of them landed safely in Sofia, while the third was diverted to Plovdiv. All three aircraft were inspected.
No perpetrator has yet been identified
“It is still too early to draw conclusions about whether the reported incidents are connected,” Tzitzikostas told reporters in Ireland. Investigating authorities have not identified a specific group or country as the organiser of the threats.
According to the Guardian, some of the threats were sent by email, while others were received by telephone or written on aircraft. Some of the messages contained information about the flight number, the airline and the arrival time.
The Associated Press reports that security experts are due to discuss measures to counter fake threats in Brussels. Key issues include coordination between countries and how to limit disruption to air transport without compromising safety procedures.