Israeli Plane Diverted to Bulgaria After Bomb Threat Reported During Flight

The OS82 Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna was forced to divert to Sofia, Bulgaria, on October 18 after a bomb threat was reported mid-flight. The Airbus A320, carrying 51 passengers and six crew members, landed safely under the escort of a Bulgarian military fighter jet. The incident occurred while the plane was flying near the Romanian border, approximately 9:10 local time.

A flight survey indicated the aircraft departed from Ben Guiron International Airport in Tel Aviv and was en route to Vienna when the threat was reported. The crew activated the international emergency code Squawk 7700, signaling a potential security risk. A Bulgarian Department of Transportation spokesman confirmed the crew’s report and the decision to land in Sofia, stating the aircraft was outside Romanian airspace at the time.

Bulgaria’s Ministry of Defense responded by dispatching an MG-29 fighter jet to escort the commercial aircraft. The operation was coordinated with the United Center for Air Report in Spain. The threat originated from an anonymous phone call made by an unboarded Austrian citizen, who reported a suspicious object aboard the plane.

Following the emergency landing, security forces and rapid-response teams evacuated all passengers and crew to safety. The aircraft was then moved to an isolated area for explosive detection checks. The Israeli Air Force noted that its intervention was unnecessary, as the incident occurred outside its airspace.

Among the passengers was a delegation of young people en route to the United Nations. An Austrian Airlines representative stated that if preliminary checks confirmed the threat was false, passengers would be transferred to alternative flights as soon as possible. Initial assessments suggested the threat might be unfounded.

The incident occurred amid heightened air safety measures in the region. Earlier, a Delta Air Lines flight from New York to Israel had also faced a similar false bomb threat. These events underscore the ongoing challenges of ensuring air travel security in a complex geopolitical environment.

Source: Read the original report (translated from Ukrainian)