False Bomb Threats Divert Seven Flights Across Europe, No Explosives Found

Anonymous bomb threats disrupted at least seven passenger flights across Europe on November 3. No explosives were found on any aircraft. The alerts affected Ryanair, Wizz Air, Scandinavian Airlines and LOT Polish Airlines. An Israel-bound cruise ship also received a threat that proved false.

In Poland, a LOT flight from London Heathrow carrying 181 people was diverted from Warsaw Chopin Airport to Warsaw-Modlin. Modlin closed briefly while security teams searched the Boeing 737 MAX. No device was found and the airport reopened. An SAS flight from Copenhagen landed at Chopin as scheduled and was inspected without incident.

In Italy, a Ryanair flight from Dublin with about 185 passengers was escorted by Italian Air Force jets into Rome’s Fiumicino Airport. A second Ryanair flight from Lisbon was also searched there. Both cleared. In Spain, a Ryanair flight from Manchester landed at Murcia after a threat. Civil Guard officers and a sniffer dog inspected the plane and baggage. No explosives were located. Parts of the airport were cordoned off temporarily.

In Bulgaria, a Wizz Air flight from Bergamo carrying 176 passengers and a Ryanair flight from Dublin were searched after landing in Sofia. Authorities reported no devices. A day earlier, a Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Sofia had diverted to Budapest after a similar alert. UK officials described the series as malicious hoaxes. Downing Street said the threats were not credible. The Metropolitan Police noted threats involving flights to or from Heathrow and Manchester and confirmed no security issues after checks.

No group claimed responsibility. Officials in multiple countries are comparing the timing and wording of the alerts to determine whether they were coordinated. The incidents occurred within hours of each other. Airlines and airports followed standard protocols: land, isolate the aircraft, evacuate or hold passengers, and conduct full searches with bomb-disposal teams where required. All flights eventually continued or were cleared.

The wave followed a single alert the previous day and produced the largest single-day cluster of aviation bomb threats in Europe in recent months. Disruption was limited to temporary runway or airport closures and delayed departures. Passenger numbers on the affected flights ranged from roughly 114 on the Manchester-Murcia Ryanair service to 185–186 on the Dublin flights. No injuries were reported.

Aviation authorities treat every threat as real until proven otherwise. The absence of devices does not reduce the operational cost of each response. Fighter escorts, runway closures and specialized search teams require coordination across borders. European air-traffic and security agencies have not publicly linked the alerts to any known group. Investigations continue in Poland, Italy, Spain, Bulgaria and the United Kingdom.

Ryanair appeared most frequently among the targeted carriers, with at least four of its flights involved. Budget airlines with high-frequency short-haul routes are more exposed to rapid successive alerts. The pattern of threats arriving by phone or email shortly before or during flights matches previous hoax campaigns that aim to force costly diversions rather than cause casualties. European governments have increased information-sharing on such incidents since the cluster began on November 2–3.