Flight from Israel Makes Emergency Landing in Bulgaria after Bomb Threat

A passenger flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna has made an emergency landing in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, after receiving a bomb threat. The crew of Austrian Airlines flight OS82 received the threat while the aircraft was near the border with Romania, according to Bulgaria's Ministry of Transport.

In its statement, the ministry said the Airbus A320 was bound for Vienna. After the threat was received, the crew decided to divert and land in Sofia, and an emergency was declared while the aircraft was still in the air.

Bulgaria's Ministry of Defence said an air force MiG-29 fighter jet escorted the plane to Sofia airport — a sign that the authorities treated the threat with the utmost seriousness from the outset.

Initial information from the Transport Ministry showed the aircraft carried six crew members and 51 passengers. All of them have since disembarked, according to the ministry's statement.

The airline told the AFP news agency that a security search of the aircraft was conducted. Once the search is complete, the passengers will be rebooked onto alternative flights as quickly as possible, the airline said.

A crisis response team has been set up, and the relevant authorities have launched an investigation into the incident, the Bulgarian Transport Ministry said. Investigators are looking into where the threat came from and how it was delivered.

According to aviation and flight tracking site FlightAware, Austrian Airlines flight 82 left Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv on Sunday at 6:46 pm local time (15:46 GMT) and landed about three hours later at Vasil Levski airport in Sofia at 9:43 pm (18:43 GMT).

Flightradar24 data showed the aircraft entered Romanian airspace at about 9:10 pm (18:10 GMT) before turning south and heading back towards Bulgaria. Information from the flight-tracking platform ADS-B Exchange indicates the aircraft was transmitting squawk code 7700 — a signal for a general emergency — at around the same time.

The incident comes at a time of existing concern over the security of flights bound for Israel. Last month, a Flydubai plane carrying 174 passengers was on its way from the United Arab Emirates to Tel Aviv when a co-pilot allegedly attacked the pilot with an axe in an attempt to crash the plane.

In that incident, the aircraft plunged about 17,000 feet (5,180 metres) before it was brought back under control by other Flydubai pilots after passengers and other crew subdued the alleged attacker. The flight was diverted and forced to make an emergency landing at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, northwestern Saudi Arabia.

Authorities in the UAE said the co-pilot was on a 'suicide' mission to crash the plane at Israel's Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. The co-pilot, Hamam Al-Hammami, an Omani national, has since been charged with terrorism offences in the UAE. The Israeli government responded to that incident by ordering checks on the identities of all pilots flying into the country.

Until the investigation in Sofia is complete, the true nature of the threat cannot be confirmed. For now, completing the search and getting the passengers onto alternative flights is the priority for the airline and the Bulgarian authorities.