Threat diverts AUA flight to Sofia before it reaches Vienna

An AUA passenger flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna landed in Sofia, Bulgaria, after a threat prompted a diversion on Sunday evening. The plane later continued to Vienna, arriving at about 3.30 a.m., ORF reported Monday.

AUA said the threat made the stop necessary. The flight landed safely in Sofia at 8.42 p.m. local time. A search of the aircraft, passengers and crew found no danger. There were 51 passengers and six crew members on board.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the threat was suspected to be a bomb warning. According to the paper, AUA received it from an Austrian citizen who was not on the aircraft.

Flight data showed the plane entered Romanian airspace before turning south and heading back towards Bulgaria. Bulgaria’s transport ministry said the air force sent a MiG-29 fighter to escort the aircraft and that a crisis team had been set up. Authorities have opened an investigation.

Recent aviation incidents cited in the report include bomb threats against two Delta Air Lines flights that proved to be false alarms, and a Flydubai flight in which a co-pilot attacked the captain with a rescue axe. In a separate incident, a passenger plane from Corfu mistakenly transmitted the code used to indicate a hijacking and was escorted by German military aircraft before landing safely in Nuremberg.