Bomb threats disrupted at least 18 flights across Europe on Friday 6 November, including services to and from the UK, according to The Guardian. The affected aircraft landed safely, and searches found no explosive devices.
The newspaper reported that the alerts affected at least nine flights to and from Prague, four flights over France, two services to Sofia and a flight from Lisbon to Rome. The figure of at least 18 flights reflected the information available when its report was updated on Friday, rather than a final tally of the disruption.
Flights to or from the UK were among those affected, but the report did not identify the British routes or flight numbers involved. It therefore does not establish which specific UK services were subject to the alerts.
Danish police were also investigating a threat concerning Copenhagen Airport. The airport operator, quoted by The Guardian, said operations were continuing normally.
Media offices evacuated in Dublin
Media organisations also received threats that morning. BBC News reported that staff at Ireland’s public broadcaster RTÉ, the Irish Independent newspaper and radio station Newstalk were evacuated in Dublin. The alerts disrupted some broadcasts.
Sky also confirmed that it had received a threat. The company said it had carried out a security assessment and reported the matter to the relevant authorities. According to the BBC, the Irish government described the warnings sent to media organisations as hoax threats, while authorities were working to identify those responsible.
It had not been established whether the flight alerts and threats against media organisations came from the same perpetrators. The Guardian reported that investigators had no evidence that a hostile terrorist organisation or state actor was directing the hoax alerts. Investigations were continuing, with responsibility and any coordination between the threats still unresolved.
