Bomb threat forces Austrian flight from Tel Aviv into emergency landing in Bulgaria
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- A bomb threat on an Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna forced an emergency diversion to Bulgaria.
- Bulgarian MiG-29 jets escorted the aircraft to Sofia after the crew declared an emergency near Romanian airspace.
- All 51 passengers and six crew members safely evacuated in Sofia as security teams inspected the plane.
A bomb threat aboard an Austrian Airlines flight en route from Tel Aviv to Vienna forced the aircraft to divert to Bulgaria on Sunday, according to statements from Bulgarian authorities and the airline.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport stated that the crew of the Austrian Airlines flight decided to execute an emergency landing in Sofia after receiving a bomb threat as the aircraft was approaching Romanian airspace.
Following a safe landing, all passengers were evacuated from the plane.
Under standard operational protocols, the Bulgarian Air Force deployed a MiG-29 fighter jet to escort the passenger airliner to the airport.
Security inspection underway
An Austrian Airlines spokesperson told AFP that 51 passengers and six crew members were on board the Airbus A320.
A full security inspection of the aircraft was initiated after it landed safely in Sofia, approximately half an hour after the threat was received.
"Once the inspection of the aircraft is completed, alternative flight bookings will be arranged for passengers as soon as possible," the airline added.
According to flight tracking data from Flightradar24, the aircraft entered Romanian airspace at around 9:10 PM before turning south back toward Bulgaria, where it landed in Sofia.
Data from flight tracking platform ADS-B Exchange indicated that the plane was squawking code "7700" -the international signal indicating a general emergency- at approximately the same time.
The Ministry of Transport confirmed that a crisis response team has been established and relevant authorities have initiated a formal investigation into the incident.
