In brief
More than 20 European passenger flights were forced to divert and undergo emergency checks after anonymous bomb threats arrived via email, according to Xinhua. Airlines such as Ryanair, Finnair, Wizz Air, Aer Lingus, LOT Polish Airlines and Aegean Airlines were involved, while Italian broadcaster Rai News 24 reported the first warning was sent to Rome’s Fiumicino. Authorities have not identified the origin of the alerts, and analysts cite possibilities ranging from copy‑cat behavior to hybrid‑warfare operations.
A fresh wave of bomb threats disrupted more than 20 passenger flights across Europe on Thursday, Nov. 5, prompting aircraft diversions, fighter‑jet scrambles and emergency security checks, Xinhua reported.
The incidents, which involved airlines including Ryanair, Finnair, Wizz Air, Aer Lingus, LOT Polish Airlines and Aegean Airlines, took place on flights operating between Britain, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Bulgaria and Greece.
Multiple threats were delivered through anonymous emails. One such alert, written in Italian, was sent to Rome’s Fiumicino airport operator and other airport‑based companies; it triggered alerts on two Rome‑bound flights from Helsinki and Dublin, Rai News 24 reported.
Following the alerts, flights were diverted, fighter jets scrambled, and airports carried out emergency inspections, although no explosives were found in any of the investigations to date.
Investigators have not yet established a common source for the warnings, leaving the origin of the threats unconfirmed.
Analysts have speculated on possible motives. Matthew Borie, co‑founder and chief intelligence officer of aviation security consultancy Osprey Flight Solutions, outlined several explanations, including copy‑cat behavior, repeated warnings from a single individual or group, and hybrid‑warfare operations by state actors or their supporters.
Other security experts suggest that repeated false warnings could be designed to create uncertainty among passengers, impose additional costs on airlines, and test the responses of aviation authorities, even without any intention of carrying out an actual attack.
In a response to Xinhua on Thursday, the European Commission cited remarks by Apostolos Tzitzikostas, European Commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism, who said it was too early to determine whether the threats had a single coordinated source.
