A Vistara flight from Delhi bound for London was diverted to Frankfurt on Friday following a bomb threat, which ultimately proved to be a hoax call again.
The flight landed safely at the Frankfurt airport and mandatory security checks are being conducted, said an airline spokesperson in a statement this morning. Once the security checks are done, the Vistara flight will fly to London.
"Vistara flight UK17 operating from Delhi to London on October 18, 2024 received a security threat on social media. In line with the protocol, all relevant authorities were immediately informed and as a precautionary measure, the pilots decided to divert the flight to Frankfurt," the spokesperson said.
The incident is latest in the worrying trend being witnessed over the past few days, where nearly 40 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats that later turned out to be hoaxes.
On Friday, Akasa Air Flight QP 1366, which was scheduled to fly from Bengaluru to Mumbai got a security alert shortly before departure. On Wednesday, Bengaluru-bound Akasa Air Flight QP1335 with more than 180 people on board returned to Delhi after a bomb threat. Following this, the Delhi Police registered an FIR in connection with bomb threats to several domestic and international flights and has launched an investigation into the matter.
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On Thursday, a Typhoon fighter jet had to be deployed by the Royal Air Force to intercept an Air India aircraft that received a bomb threat. The plane later landed safely at the London Heathrow airport. Around five more flights got bomb threats the same day.
Modus operandi
Most of the bomb threats were received on social media, primarily X. The person(s) used VPN (Virtual Private Network) or dark web browser to create accounts on X, and then posted similar messages from multiple accounts, according to cyber security agencies.
According to PTI, common lines and words like "bombs", "blood will spread everywhere", "explosive devices", "this is not a joke" and "you will all die" and "bomb rakhwa dia hai" (Hindi for bomb has been placed), have been found in the posts.
Around 10 such social media handles, primarily on X, have been suspended or blocked.
Probe into the bomb threats
The Delhi Police has written to social media platforms seeking details of the accounts that posted the bomb threats. They are in touch with the Mumbai Police too in this matter.
Cyber security agencies have also enhanced 'cyber patrolling' on social media and the dark web to check for possible links or trends, and also to find the email registrations and geographical locations of handles that have issued threats.
The details are being shared with the respective police departments, they said.
Ministry mulling strict norms
Ruling out any conspiracy behind the bom threats, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu that “individuals, minors and pranksters” have been found to be responsible for it so far. He said the ministry is looking at amending regulations to ensure strict action.
The ministry is also planning to introduce strict norms to prevent hoax bomb threats, like putting the perpetrators in the no-fly list.
