Aircraft were diverted, searched and escorted by military jets Thursday, but authorities reported finding no explosives or other hazardous materials.
MILAN, ITALY — Bomb threats disrupted dozens of passenger flights across Europe on Thursday, forcing some aircraft to divert, make emergency landings or fly under military escort as authorities in several countries responded to an unusually large wave of security alerts. No explosives or other hazardous materials had been found in the incidents investigated, officials and airlines said.
The Nov. 5 disruptions followed similar threats earlier in the week and affected flights operated by airlines including Ryanair, Aer Lingus, Finnair, Wizz Air, LOT Polish Airlines, easyJet, Aegean Airlines and Air Serbia. Reports differed on the exact number of flights affected as new alerts continued to emerge, but authorities and news organizations documented dozens of incidents during the week. European Union officials said it remained too early to determine whether the threats were connected or who was behind them.
Among the most significant disruptions was an Aer Lingus flight traveling from Dublin to Rome. The Airbus A320 was diverted to the Évreux military air base in northern France after a bomb threat. French fighter jets intercepted the aircraft, and passengers and crew were moved to safety after landing. Bomb disposal specialists examined the plane, while French aviation authorities opened an investigation. The French prime minister’s office said the interception was ordered after the flight crew did not cooperate with authorities as expected during the response.
Other aircraft were escorted by military jets as authorities treated the threats as potential security emergencies. A Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome was intercepted first by a Croatian fighter aircraft and later escorted by Italian air force jets before landing safely in Rome. Finnair said two of its flights faced bomb scares that proved unfounded. In Bulgaria, three Ryanair flights headed for Sofia from Madrid, Copenhagen and London also received military escorts. Two landed in Sofia, while the London flight was diverted to Plovdiv. Inspections found no explosives, Bulgarian officials said.
Threats also affected flights arriving in or traveling through Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Poland, Romania and other countries. Czech authorities searched four aircraft after they landed in Prague and reported finding nothing dangerous. A LOT Polish Airlines flight from Warsaw to Brussels was inspected after arrival without any hazardous material being found. A Wizz Air flight from Milan to Bucharest landed safely following a threat, and an Air Serbia flight from Belgrade to Bucharest resumed operations after checks determined its warning was a hoax.
The alerts were delivered in several ways, including emails sent to airports and aviation authorities. Some messages reviewed by news organizations claimed to come from people identifying themselves with an anti-feminist group. Investigators had not established whether those claims were genuine or whether the same person or organization was responsible for multiple threats. No government had publicly identified a perpetrator, and authorities had not established a motive. European officials cautioned against drawing conclusions about possible coordination while national investigations continued.
European Union Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas said the bloc was monitoring the situation and had activated an EU aviation-security information-sharing mechanism. He said officials were in contact with affected member states and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. Tzitzikostas said it was too early to determine whether the reported incidents were linked and that national investigations remained underway. The heightened coordination allowed governments, airports, airlines and law enforcement agencies to share information as additional threats were assessed.
The scale of the alerts was unusual even though false bomb threats involving commercial aviation occur periodically. Similar warnings earlier in the week had already caused diversions and aircraft searches, including incidents involving Ryanair, Wizz Air and other carriers. Authorities said those earlier threats also produced no evidence of explosives. By Thursday, the repeated warnings had required airport security teams, police, military aircraft and flight crews across several countries to respond while airlines dealt with delays, inspections and disrupted schedules.
Security specialists said repeated false threats can cause significant operational problems even when no device is found because each alert must be assessed and, when necessary, aircraft must be isolated, searched or diverted. Airlines can also face missed connections, crew scheduling problems and aircraft being taken temporarily out of service. Despite the number of alerts Thursday, the affected flights represented only a small portion of the tens of thousands of flights scheduled across Europe that day, and major airports generally continued operating.
Authorities across Europe continued investigating the origin of the threats Thursday night. Officials had reported no injuries and no confirmed explosive devices connected to the alerts. The European Union’s aviation-security information-sharing system remained active as national agencies worked to determine whether the incidents were coordinated, connected to earlier threats or carried out by unrelated hoaxers.
Author note: Last updated November 5, 2026.