Flight-tracking platform Flightradar24 reported that the aircraft changed course near Paris before circling over the Evreux area
By Njoku Vincent
An Aer Lingus aircraft travelling from Dublin, Ireland, to Rome, Italy, was forced to divert to a military airbase in France on Thursday following a bomb threat, amid a growing wave of security alerts targeting flights across Europe.
The Airbus A320 was redirected to the Evreux airbase in Normandy after an in-flight emergency was declared.
The French Prime Minister’s office confirmed the diversion, saying Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s office was monitoring the situation. However, authorities did not immediately disclose further details about the threat.
Flight-tracking platform Flightradar24 reported that the aircraft changed course near Paris before circling over the Evreux area.
The incident came amid a series of bomb threats against European aviation operators, with several aircraft reportedly forced to divert or undergo emergency security procedures.
In Belgium, an aircraft that made an emergency landing at Brussels’ Zaventem Airport was identified by local media as belonging to Polish carrier LOT.
Similarly, a Finnair aircraft travelling from Helsinki was escorted by Italian Air Force jets to its scheduled destination in Rome.
Bulgarian authorities also reported that three aircraft made emergency landings following bomb threats. Flights from Copenhagen and Madrid landed in Sofia, while another aircraft travelling from London was diverted to Plovdiv.
The latest developments followed Tuesday’s security scare, when seven flights and a cruise ship across Europe received bomb threats, disrupting airport operations.
The affected airlines included LOT, Scandinavian Airlines, Wizz Air and Ryanair. Security checks, however, did not uncover any explosive devices.
In another incident, a passenger aircraft heading to Bulgaria was diverted to Hungary after receiving a similar threat while in flight. No injuries were reported.
Although responsibility for the threats has not been established, the incidents have intensified concerns over security across European transport networks.
European officials have previously accused Russia and Iran of sponsoring hybrid attacks and sabotage activities, allegations both countries have consistently denied.
Security experts have also suggested that the threats could form part of a broader pattern of low-cost, difficult-to-trace disruption campaigns, particularly following recent cyberattacks targeting supermarket refrigeration systems in several European countries.