Indian airports have been grappling with a series of bomb threats in recent days. In most cases, these threats have been found to be hoaxes.
Nevertheless, they have resulted in flight delays, diversions, and heightened security measures, causing significant disruption to air travel.
Wave of Bomb Threat Incidents
Monday 14 October
A wave of incidents first took place this week on Monday 14 October 2024. Over the course of the day, three international flights were disrupted by hoax bomb threat messages.
Air India flight AI119, bound for New York from Mumbai, was diverted to Delhi after a bomb threat was received. Airport authorities received the threat via social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
On the same day, two IndiGo flights from Mumbai, one bound for Dubai and the other for Istanbul, were delayed for extensive security checks.
Tuesday 15 October
Seven more bomb threats were then received on Tuesday, October 15. This notably saw the second diversion of an Air India international flight.
Air India flight AI127 was en route from New Delhi to Chicago, when a bomb threat forced a precautionary diversion to Iqaluit International Airport, Canada.
Further flights received similar bomb threats on Tuesday, involving a range of Indian carriers. This included an Indigo flight from Dammam-Lucknow, and Air India Express flights Jaipur-Bengaluru and Madurai-Singapore.
Further threats disrupted the carriers Akasa Air, SpiceJet and Alliance Air, according to local news source The Indian Express.
It was reported that all seven threats received on Tuesday, October 15, were traced back to an X social media account. X has now suspended the account @schizobomber777, which was named as the source of the seven bomb threats received on Tuesday, October 15.
An anonymous user recently set up on the social media platform, apparently with the sole intention of issuing threats.
Air India Statement
The two forced diversions prompted Air India to issue a subsequent covering statement. “Though all have subsequently been found to be hoaxes, as a responsible airline operator, all threats are taken seriously.”
“We are considering taking legal action against the perpetrators of such threats to ensure that they are held accountable for the disruption and inconvenience caused to passengers.”
These threats have raised broader concerns about the safety and security of Indian aviation. Indian authorities are now investigating the string of incidents.
Regardless of the motivations, it is clear that the incidents have had a significant impact on the aviation industry in India. Airlines have had to incur additional costs due to flight delays and security measures. Passengers have faced inconvenience and anxiety due to the disruptions. Air India faced significant costs associated with two inflight diversions.
As the authorities continue to investigate these threats, a heightened level of vigilance and security is now in force at Indian airports. This includes strengthening security protocols, enhancing intelligence gathering, and improving coordination among relevant agencies.
Update: Wednesday 16 October
Further bomb threats were made against two more Indian flights today, continuing a series of incidents that has now lasted three days.
Akasa Air flight QP1335 bound for Bengaluru, returned to Delhi after an alert today. In a second incident, IndiGo flight 6E651, operating from Mumbai to Delhi, diverted to Ahmedabad.
Today’s incidents take the total number of alerts to twelve. An Indian parliamentary committee convened this morning to address the ongoing issue.
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