Austrian Air flight from TLV to Vienna makes emergency landing due to bomb threat
Bulgarian air force scrambles MiG-29 fighter jet to escort airliner after it issued an emergency squawk code; passengers evacuated and plane being searched, says airline
A bomb threat forced an Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna to divert to Bulgaria on Sunday, Bulgarian authorities and the airline confirmed. The crew reportedly received the threat as they approached Romanian airspace, leading to an emergency landing in Sofia. Passengers were evacuated following the landing, and the Bulgarian air force scrambled a MiG-29 fighter jet to escort the aircraft, as per established protocols.
The Airbus A320, carrying 51 passengers and six crew members, was thoroughly searched before passengers were rebooked onto alternative flights. The airline stated that the search would be completed as soon as possible. Flightradar24 and ADS-B Exchange data indicated the aircraft entered Romanian airspace around 9:10pm, then turned south and headed back to Bulgaria, where it landed in Sofia.
The transport ministry has set up a crisis response team, and authorities are investigating the incident.
Written by urgent.news from New Straits Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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