PRAGUE — A coordinated wave of hoax bomb threats struck European aviation on Friday, with Prague’s Václav Havel Airport alone receiving threats against nine flights, prompting emergency security sweeps, flight diversions, and fighter jet escorts across the continent.
According to airport spokesperson Denisa Hejtmánková, the threats targeted four incoming flights arriving from Denmark, Britain, and Spain, alongside five outbound flights destined for the Netherlands, Cyprus, Romania, Italy, and Britain. Czech police grounded all nine aircraft to conduct thorough searches. The sweeps, which concluded after approximately two hours, found no explosive devices.
Despite the heightened security response, Prague airport spokesman Jiri Hannich confirmed that the facility’s operations remained “standard and smooth.”
International Escalation and Flight Diversions
The fallout from the Prague threats quickly extended beyond Czech borders, triggering international military and logistical responses. In Hungary, air force fighter jets were scrambled three times on Friday to escort targeted commercial flights en route to Bucharest and Cyprus.
Elsewhere, a Wizz Air flight travelling from Prague to Rome was forced to divert to Venice, briefly suspending local air traffic in the Italian city. Dutch media also reported that airline KLM received a threat concerning its scheduled flight from Prague to Amsterdam.
A Pan-European Security Strain
The incident in Prague was part of a broader surge in aviation threats reported across multiple European nations on Friday.
In Portugal, authorities searched a Ryanair flight arriving in Lisbon after receiving an alert through international police cooperation channels. Bulgaria’s transport ministry reported false alarms for two flights arriving in Sofia from London Stansted and Brussels. Meanwhile, the office of French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu noted four separate threats against aircraft traversing French airspace. All affected planes landed safely.
Friday’s disruptions cap a week of escalating hoax alerts that have strained European air defences. Earlier in the week, a Wizz Air flight from London was diverted to Budapest under military escort, and a LOT Polish Airlines flight forced a brief operational halt at Warsaw’s Modlin airport. On Thursday alone, more than a dozen flights were targeted—including four bound for Prague—prompting air forces in Italy, France, and Bulgaria to scramble fighter jets.
Hybrid Threat Concerns
To date, no individual or group has claimed responsibility for the hoax campaign, and officials across the affected countries have not named a culprit.
However, the surge in aviation disruptions aligns with mounting security concerns regarding hybrid warfare in the region. Speaking to parliament last month, France’s Secretary-General for Defence and National Security, Nicolas Roche, warned that such operations are increasingly concentrated across Europe. Roche attributed the rise in incidents to a broader campaign of hybrid threats, pointing to coordinated acts of sabotage, cyberattacks, drone activity, and espionage.
Reference: Al-Mayadeen