Austrian Airlines flight diverted after reported bomb threat

An Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna made an emergency landing in Sofia on Sunday night, 18 October, following a reported bomb threat. BBC News reported that all 51 passengers and six crew members were unharmed. The airline said a subsequent security search found no threat, and the flight completed its journey to Vienna with all passengers aboard.

The Airbus A320 was over Romania when it diverted to Bulgaria. According to the Bulgarian transport ministry, the country’s air force sent a MiG-29 fighter to escort the aircraft, and passengers were evacuated after landing. Authorities searched the jet, which reached Sofia about 30 minutes after the alert was raised. An investigation has begun.

Bulgarian and Israeli media described the alert as a bomb threat; Austrian Airlines confirmed that a threat had been received but did not disclose its nature. Flight-tracking data showed flight OS82 departing Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday evening and landing at Sofia’s Vasil Levski airport roughly three hours later.