More than ninety bomb threat hoax calls disrupted five Indian airlines and led to flight disruptions and delays worldwide. All the planes made it to the ground, but some were diverted to land in Canada and Germany; fighter planes were airborne in Britain and Singapore.
As of October 13th, this has been responded to with over 70 hoax calls which on Saturday threatened 30. Among the affected airlines IndiGo received threats to six of its flights on Sunday.
Some people have been arrested, including one who managed a coaching center, as the authorities continue with the probes. One user with the username X (previously Twitter) was banned for sharing threats. Passengers traveling through flights operating from India also had flights diverted and required the military.
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90+ Bomb Hoax Calls Hit Indian Airlines, Triggering Global Disruptions
Over 90 hoax calls of bomb threats were received at five Indian-based airlines, Indian media said on Sunday raising the terror among passengers as well as causing world over flight delays.
All the threatened airplanes touched the ground safely and unhurt, but the series of threats has led to the planes being rerouted to Canada and Germany and fighter jets scrambled to shadow other planes in Britain and Singapore.
India’s government and civil aviation authority have said they will not tolerate “very strict action”.
Officials from New Delhi’s civil aviation authorities haven’t disclosed the number of threats received in the past week, local newspaper, The Times of India and News18 reported over 70 hoax calls with regard to domestic and international flights since October 13.
There were at least 30 hoax threats on Saturday, with at least another 20 threats made to other airlines on Sunday. Indian airline IndiGo said it has received threats against six of its flights on Sunday.
Among the five was one domestic flight and the four international flights connecting India to Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah and Dammam, and Turkey’s Istanbul on two flights each.
“We would like to make it clear that the safety and security of individuals on our planes is of utmost concern to IndiGo,” the airline responded in its statement. “We have cooperation with the authorities and are doing everything to prevent such incidents,”
Global Flight Disruptions from Bomb Hoaxes
The general effect of such issues of delays and diversions has weighed on the operating schedules and expenses of global airlines. At least one child or minor arrests happened in India, but the threats persist.
The arrested man was a stranger who had been a ‘guru’ in the bunking business and runs a coaching institute,” said India’s aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu adding: “All others responsible for the disruptions will be identified and duly prosecuted,” on Wednesday.
A report in Indian Express said that an anonymous account on X, which used to be Twitter, was banned for posting bomb threats to at least 40 flights on Friday and Saturday. These consisted of domestic and foreign airlines, namely from the US and New Zealand.
“There are bombs placed onboard… No one will make out alive. “Hurry up and evacuate the plane,” read the identical messages from the suspended account, the newspaper said.
Some of the latest affected flights include an Air India aircraft that was flying from Mumbai to New York with US security officials sweeping the plane after successfully landing at New York’s JFK airport on Saturday.
Other affected flights include an Air India aircraft from New Delhi to Chicago, which was forced to land in Iqaluit, far north Canada on Tuesday. That is when Canada’s Air Force had to fly the passengers onward.
A day later, Indonesia instructed military airplanes to approach a Boeing 747 belonging to Air India Express. On Thursday, two British Royal Air Force Typhoons were scrambled to escort an Air India Boeing 777-300ER that had received a death threat, but the plane was able to land safely in London.
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