NEW DELHI, Oct 22: The spate of hoax bomb threats targeting major Indian airlines and causing havoc in the aviation system in the country continued unabated on Tuesday when more than 70 domestic and international flights received a bomb threat within a span of 24 hours from Monday night to Tuesday.
As per the latest tally, at least 23 flights from Indigo, 21 from Vistara, 12 from Akasa Air and 23 from Air India have received bomb threats during this period. In little over a week, more than 150 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats and the number seems to be on the rise by the day.
The IndiGo flights that received threats are 6E-63 Delhi Jeddah, 6E-12 Istanbul-Delhi, 6E-83 Delhi-Dammam, 6E-65 Kozikode-Jeddah, 6E-67 Hyderabad-Jeddah, 6E-77 Bengaluru-Jeddah, 6E-18 Istanbul-Mumbai, 6E-164 Mangalore-Mumbai, 6E-118 Lucknow-Pune and 6E-75 Ahmedabad-Jeddah, 6E-17 Mumbai-Istanbul, 6E-196 Bengaluru-Lucknow, 6E-214 Mumbai-Srinagar, 6E-297 Hyderabad-Jodhpur, 6E-318 Kolkata-Ahmedabad, 6E-323 Bagdogra-Chennai, 6E-381 Goa-Ahmedabad, 6E-394 Kolkata-Jaipur, 6E-399 Lucknow-Goa, 6E-403 Pune-Dehradun, 6E-455 Kolkata-Bengaluru, 6E-433 Aizawl-Kolkata, and, 6E-419 Surat-Goa.
The passengers from the respective flights were disembarked safely, an airline spokesperson said. “At IndiGo, the safety of our customers and crew remains paramount in all facets of our operations. We worked closely with the relevant authorities, and standard operating procedures were followed. We sincerely regret any inconvenience it may have caused our customers and appreciate their understanding,” the airline said.
Similarly, 21 flights from Vistara received security threats, including, UK 17 New Delhi-London, UK 21 New Delhi-Paris, UK 23 Mumbai-Paris, UK 25 New Delhi-Frankfurt, UK 107 Mumbai-Singapore, UK 27 Mumbai-Frankfurt, UK 122 Bangkok-New Delhi, UK 124 Bangkok-Mumbai, UK 155 New Delhi-Kathmandu, UK 272 Male-Mumbai, and, UK 508 Sri Vijaya Puram (Port Blair)- Bengaluru.
12 flights from Akasa Air—QP 1142 Goa-Pune, QP 1153 Varanasi-Mumbai, QP 1324 Agartala-Guwahati, QP 1378 Delhi-Goa, QP 1386 Bagdogra-Mumbai, QP 1431 Hyderabad- Bengaluru, QP 1451 Mumbai-Lucknow, QP 1503 Mumbai-Guwahati, QP 1563 Pune-Kolkata, QP 1608 Delhi-Pune, QP 1612 Bengaluru-Varanasi, and, QP 1822 Ayodhya-Bengaluru— received similar security threats on social media. The airline issued a statement and said the Akasa Air was following all safety and security procedures in coordination with local authorities.
“Some of our flights operating on October 22, 2024 have received security alerts today. The Akasa Air Emergency Response teams are monitoring the situation and are in touch with the security and regulatory authorities. We are following all safety and security procedures in coordination with local authorities and the Akasa Air teams on ground are prepared to assist passengers to ensure their safety and comfort,” an airline spokesperson said.
Around 30 domestic and international flights operated by Indian airlines received bomb threats on Monday night. An Air India spokesperson confirmed that some Air India flights that operated on Monday were subject to security threats received on social media. “Following the laid down protocols, relevant authorities were immediately alerted, and all security procedures strictly adhered to, as per guidance from the regulatory authorities and security agencies,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Multiple carriers in the past few days have received several such calls, significantly disrupting flight operations across the country. While most of these threats have turned out to be hoaxes, the airlines continue to face operational challenges due to the protocols that must be followed during such incidents.
Top officers of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Bureau of Civil Aviation (BCA), Central Industrial Security Forces (CISF), Intelligence Bureau (IB) and other central agencies held a series of meetings on Monday to address the situation. Senior police officers involved in the process called the situation the “Jamtara of Indian aviation,” drawing parallels with the infamous Jharkhand district known for cybercrimes.
(Manas Dasgupta)
