At Least Seven European Flights Receive Security Alerts; Searches Find No Suspicious Items
At least seven passenger flights across Europe received security alerts on November 3, affecting airports in Poland, Italy, Spain and Bulgaria. Airport and police authorities activated security procedures, leading to diversions, temporary runway closures and short interruptions to airport operations. Reuters and The Associated Press reported that searches found no suspicious items on the affected aircraft and that no one was injured. Authorities had not identified who sent the alerts, and there was no confirmed evidence that the incidents were coordinated by a single group.
Reuters counted at least seven flights targeted by alerts on Tuesday: two bound for Warsaw, two for Sofia, two for Rome and one for Murcia in Spain. Bulgaria's transport ministry later confirmed to Reuters that the two Sofia-bound aircraft were travelling from Bergamo, Italy, and Dublin, Ireland. Earlier reports had incorrectly suggested that one of the planes had come from Israel; that information was subsequently corrected.
In Poland, a LOT flight from London's Heathrow Airport to Warsaw Chopin Airport was diverted to Warsaw Modlin after an alert. Modlin temporarily closed while the aircraft and passengers were checked. No suspicious item was found, and the airport reopened. A separate SAS flight from Copenhagen landed as scheduled at Chopin Airport, where one runway was temporarily closed for security checks.
In Italy, two Ryanair flights from Lisbon and Dublin were searched after arriving at Rome's Fiumicino Airport. Aircraft, passengers and baggage were checked, with no suspicious items found. The Dublin flight was escorted by Italian Air Force fighter jets before landing. ANSA and the AP reported that airport operations returned to normal after the searches were completed.
A Ryanair flight from Manchester in the United Kingdom to Murcia in Spain landed safely after an alert. The 121 passengers and crew members were checked, and Spanish police inspected the aircraft and baggage. No suspicious items were found. Parts of Murcia airport were temporarily restricted before normal operations resumed.
Bulgaria's transport minister said two flights from Bergamo and Dublin were inspected by counterterrorism officers after landing in Sofia. No suspicious objects were found. Reuters reported that the Bergamo flight, operated by Wizz Air, carried 176 passengers, while the Ryanair flight from Dublin carried 186. Both aircraft landed in Sofia as scheduled and were not diverted because of the alerts.
On Monday, a Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Sofia received an alert while in the air and was diverted to Budapest, Hungary. Hungarian Gripen fighter jets escorted the aircraft to a safe landing. Searches found no suspicious items. That incident occurred before Tuesday's seven flight alerts and should be counted separately.
The Associated Press noted that Europe had also seen a similar incident last month, when a flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna made an emergency landing in Bulgaria following a security alert. The repeated warnings have raised the security posture at airports, but publicly available information does not establish a direct connection among the incidents.
Italian media reported that anonymous emails triggered the alerts involving the two Rome-bound flights. Bulgarian officials said authorities were working to identify the sender. Reuters reported that no group had claimed responsibility and that officials had not publicly blamed any actor. Some security analysts have suggested that low-cost alerts could be used to disrupt European transport, but that does not establish that a coordinated cross-border operation took place.
As of reports published on November 3, searches had found no suspicious items, the affected aircraft had landed safely and airports had resumed normal operations. The incidents could nevertheless cause delays, diversions, additional passenger screening and higher operating costs. Airlines and airport authorities are expected to continue cooperating with police investigations into the source of the alerts and to review whether security procedures need to change.