Repeated bomb threats disrupt flights across Europe again

European airlines faced a second wave of bomb threats this week on Thursday, prompting diversions and security precautions across several countries.

None of the warnings had immediately been confirmed as genuine. The November 5 incidents produced different operational responses: some crews changed airports, others completed their routes, and one aircraft was stopped before departure. Safe arrivals did not, by themselves, establish whether every security check had been completed.

Airlines divert flights and replace aircraft

Aer Lingus said its EI402 service, traveling between Dublin and Rome, touched down without incident at Evreux in France after a precautionary diversion. The aircraft landed west of Paris rather than continuing to the Italian capital; the airline characterized the change as a security measure.

LOT reported that its Brussels-bound service departing Warsaw arrived safely following a warning, with subsequent checks finding nothing suspicious. A separate Paris-bound LOT aircraft was halted during taxiing, and the carrier moved its passengers onto a replacement plane. The two incidents required different precautions, one after arrival and the other before departure.

Finnair said a Vienna-bound service originating in Helsinki received a threat but completed its journey without changing its destination. Jettime operated that flight. Its arrival contrasted with the Aer Lingus diversion, illustrating that the warnings did not produce a uniform response across the affected routes.

Prague prepares as Bulgaria receives aircraft

Czech police reported threats involving four Prague-bound aircraft and said preparations were underway to receive them. Police considered the warnings to have low credibility, an assessment that accompanied, rather than replaced, the landing preparations. Their statement did not establish the outcome of checks on those aircraft.

Bulgarian officials reported three emergency landings linked to threats. The interior minister said services arriving from Copenhagen and Madrid reached Sofia without incident. Those arrivals added Bulgaria to the countries handling aircraft affected by the morning's warnings.

The earlier disruption, on Tuesday, involved threats against at least seven flights as well as a cruise ship. No explosive devices were found in those incidents. Thursday's recurrence extended the disruption within the same week, although the supplied account did not establish a common origin for the two episodes.

Responsibility for threats remains unassigned

No country had assigned responsibility for Thursday's warnings. European officials have separately accused Russia and Iran of sabotage and activities they describe as "hybrid attacks"; both governments deny conducting such campaigns. Those broader accusations do not establish a connection between either country and these aviation threats.

If further warnings require diversions or aircraft substitutions, affected carriers could face additional interruptions even when searches find no device. If services instead continue to their scheduled destinations, the operational consequences could be more limited. The unresolved issues are who issued the threats, whether the incidents were connected, and what the remaining security checks establish.