Air India flight declared emergency after Mumbai-London flight received bomb threat. On the same day, five Air India flights besides two Vistara and two IndiGo flights were also exposed to bomb threats, in addition to a series of threats airlines have faced this week.
The aircraft was ‘squawking 7700,’ the indication a general emergency by the pilots. According to the website FlightRadar24, the Boeing 777 took off from Mumbai at 7:05 AM IST and went round over East England before declaring an hour ahead of the scheduled landing time at Heathrow Airport in London at 12:05 PM UK time.
As per the latest updates on FlightRadar24, the aircraft is no longer ‘squawking 7700’ and has landed safely at Heathrow. This code alerts nearby Air Traffic Controllers to the aircraft’s situation.
This bomb threat pattern has now continued for four days running and now impacts at least 20 flights. The threat came when a Vistara flight, which was coming from Frankfurt landed, and as it was received via social media, the crew went for immediate security checks. A spokesperson from Vistara said, “Vistara flight UK 028 operating from Frankfurt to Mumbai on 16 October 2024 was subject to a security threat received on social media. All relevant authorities were immediately informed.”. The aircraft safely landed at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai and it was evacuated to the isolation bay from where all customers had disembarked. The company is fully cooperating with the security agencies to complete the mandatory security checks. “Safety and security of our customers, crew, and aircraft are always paramount at Vistara”.
Meanwhile, an IndiGo flight from Istanbul to Mumbai also received a bomb threat and was isolated for a security check. The airline confirmed: “Flight 6E 18 operating from Istanbul to Mumbai received a security-related alert. The aircraft was isolated upon landing, and all passengers were evacuated safely.” It is cooperating closely with the relevant authorities, following standard operating procedures.
The Centre and civil authorities are coordinating to tackle the situation that is developing further into the crisis. The Home Ministry has sought a detailed report from the Civil Aviation Ministry regarding the incidents. The DGCA would prepare a report with input from the airlines about bomb scare incidents.
This fact led to a Parliamentary Standing Committee being summoned and followed by a meeting with Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu along with the DGCA officials. The Minister claimed, “We are closely monitoring the situation and ensuring that we are committed to maintaining the highest security standards; passenger safety remains our topmost priority.”.
According to sources, there have been proposals of measures to deal with such cases. Some of them are adding those making bomb threats in a flight to the ‘Unruly Passengers’ list. Airlines have proposed a five-year flying ban for offenders and also stated that offenders should be made financially liable for damages incurred on false pretences of bomb threats.
Names of people responsible for making hoax calls will be passed on to the airlines and security agencies, with the Civil Aviation Ministry planning to soon issue a revision of the guidelines. The Ministry of Home Affairs has also asked the CISF to remain extra vigilant at all airports.
