Three aircraft make emergency landings in Bulgaria following bomb threats

Bomb threats sent by email were received concerning three Ryanair flights from European cities to Bulgaria. In response to the reports of a potential threat, three MiG-29 fighter jets on combat air patrol at Bulgaria's Graf Ignatievo Air Base took off at 10:11 a.m. with orders to intercept and escort the civilian aircraft.

Two of the planes, arriving from Copenhagen and Madrid, have already landed at Sofia’s Vasil Levski Airport. The third, which departed from London, landed in Plovdiv, airport executive director Krasimir Peshev said. The aircraft had originally been scheduled to land at Sofia Airport.

So far, there has been no information about any dangerous objects being found or any actual threat on board any of the aircraft. The authorities are carrying out inspections, while the security services are working to identify the source of the threats. The investigation is ongoing, and security measures at the affected airports have been stepped up.

The Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) recalls that three days ago, a Wizz Air flight from London to Sofia was diverted to Budapest after a bomb threat was reported while the aircraft was in flight.

New editor: Diana Tsankova

English editor: R. Petkova