What Happens When a Flight Gets a Bomb Threat?

Indian Airlines are receiving a myriad of hoax bomb threats, which are inconveniencing passengers and disrupting flight schedules. Indian media reported on Monday that over the past week, 100 threats were made against flights. These fake threats coerce the concerned airlines to divert and delay flights and deploy serious security measures.

Indian Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu declared, "Even though there are hoax threats, we can’t take the situation non-seriously.” Furthermore, he said that despite most threats turning out to be fake, airlines and authorities have a rigid security protocol they are required to follow whenever a threat is received.

On Tuesday, an Indigo spokesperson passed a statement in which he said four of its flights were affected by threat calls on Monday. Three of these were domestic flights, while one was bound for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. After receiving the threat alert, passengers were safely disembarked from the targeted flights. Air India also confirmed that its flights had been subjected to security threats received via social media.

According to the reports on October 14, an Air India fly out for New York had to be diverted shortly after takeoff from Mumbai, India’s financial capital, after it received a bomb threat, making an emergency landing in Delhi. 

On Thursday, the U.K.’s Royal Air Force intervened in an Air India flight scheduled for Mumbai to London due to receiving a bomb threat. Another case of the same airline’s flight was forced to land at Iqaluit Airport in northeastern Canada, scheduled for Delhi to Chicago on October 15.

Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu in a statement, highlighted, “Strict action will be taken against hoax threats, as safety remains our top priority. Those jeopardizing security will face serious consequences.”

On Monday, Khalistan terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun issued a warning on Monday, advising passengers to avoid boarding Air India flights between November 1 and 19, coinciding with the anniversary of the anti-Sikh riots.

How Do Airlines Handle It?

After receiving the bomb threat, the airlines can't land the flight immediately, so they will take some precautions. Most airlines dump the fuel first in the air and then on land, but this process has a cascading effect. One of the airline's experts said, "If a flight has just taken off and there is a bomb threat, the flight cannot land because it is already on a whole load of fuel," he said. "So they must dump the fuel first in the air and then land. In addition, he stated that The financial impact on the airline is also pretty severe," he said. There are costs associated with dumping fuel, rotating the crew, putting passengers in a hotel, and refueling the aircraft. 

According to the source, these bomb threats are fake, but they still need to take quick action for passengers' safety. Indian Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu expressed officials were considering adjusting threat response protocols to make the experience smoother for passengers and airlines. But they still have to take every threat seriously. Upon talking with Kapur, he said, People think that this is something you can do for fun, and there is probably no consequence," he said. "But it does not mean that if there are 30 hoaxes, the 31st will also be a hoax.

In addition Naidu said I am deeply concerned over the recent disruptive acts targeting Indian airlines, affecting domestic and international operations.  

As per the source, Naidu said eight flights were diverted in the past week. He added that authorities had enhanced security at airports and were using closed circuit cameras to monitor them more closely. A surge of hoax bomb threats has caused significant disruption to travel for passengers on major airlines in India in the recent days.