An Airbus A320 passenger airliner operated by Austrian Airlines, flying from Tel Aviv to Vienna, made an emergency landing in Sofia. The reason was a report of a bomb threat. An inspection of the aircraft found nothing suspicious. UNN reports this, citing DW.
Details
An Airbus A320 operated by Austrian Airlines, which was flying from Tel Aviv to Vienna, made an emergency landing in Sofia on the evening of Sunday, October 18. There were 51 passengers and six crew members on board.
In the Bulgarian capital, an "inspection of the aircraft" was carried out after a threat report was received, the carrier said. Several hours later, Austrian Airlines reported that the inspection had found no threats.
According to data from the Flightradar24 portal, the aircraft was flying its usual route, but over southern Romania it suddenly turned around and landed in Sofia. Three hours later, it departed for Vienna, arriving there overnight on October 19.
According to media reports, including the British television channel Sky News, a bomb threat signal was received as the aircraft was flying over Bulgaria.
Bulgarian authorities told the television channel that, before landing in Sofia, the aircraft was escorted by a fighter jet from the national air force. At the airport, all passengers left the aircraft.