Aer Lingus plane among 14 flights hit by bomb threats

Italian, French and Bulgarian fighter jets were scrambled today as at least 14 European flights - including an Aer Lingus flight from Dublin - were hit by hoax bomb alerts for the third day this week, authorities and airlines said.

The hoaxes particularly targeted carriers and flights to or from Bulgaria, Czech Republic and Italy.

Three flights were diverted in all, but all the jets landed safely with no explosives found.

More than 20 hoaxes have now been reported this week with Ryanair the victim of at least seven.

Aer Lingus Flight EI402 left Dublin Airport at 6.24am this morning, travelling to Rome Fiumicino Airport.

The airline said the flight was diverted as a "security precaution", adding that it would work "to reaccommodate customers to their final destination as soon as possible".

In a statement, the office of French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said it was aware of the situation, which is being monitored.

France's air force said it had dispatched planes "as soon as the threat was reported".

There were 151 passengers and six crew on board the flight, which landed at Evreux airbase, according to the French PM's office.

It added those on board were moved to a safe place and a bomb unit attended the scene.

Three Ryanair flights targeted

Three Ryanair planes headed for Sofia from Madrid, Copenhagen, and London Stansted were targeted by bomb threats, a spokesperson for the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport said.

Two of the planes landed in Sofia but the flight from London-Stansted was diverted to Plovdiv Airport, east of the capital.

Air force fighter jets escorted all three planes, the defence ministry said, saying such missions "detect, identify and escort the aircraft".

All three planes were later inspected, and no explosives were found, an interior ministry spokesperson said.

Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome affected

A Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome was escorted to Rome by a fighter jet and checked by bomb experts, a spokesperson for Fiumicino Airport said.

A Finnair spokesperson, Stiina Tuunanen, confirmed that "nothing unusual was found" when the jet landed.

Finnair has a "very clear process that we follow in situations like this, and we always work closely with the local authorities," Ms Tuunanen said.

She said another false bomb threat had targeted flight AY1471 from Helsinki to Vienna, without providing further information.

Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw re-routed

After receiving a threat, a Wizz Air flight from Milan to Warsaw was re-routed to Vienna, the airline said, "in accordance with established safety protocols and procedures".

Another Wizz Air flight from Milan to Bucharest landed at its destination safely, "following which a crisis unit was set up at Henri Coanda Airport," the Romanian intelligence service said in a statement.

Four Prague-bound planes targeted

Four Prague-bound planes flown by Ryanair, Easy Jet and Sky Express were the target of threats.

"We perceive the credibility of the threats as low," said Czech police on X. "Nevertheless, we are not underestimating the situation, and all necessary security measures have been activated."

Prague Airport spokeswoman Denisa Hejtmankova said the airport had received all the threats in emails from anonymous addresses.

Meanwhile, two planes that arrived at Copenhagen were also the subject of threats.

"Our assessment is that there is no danger, and there has never been any danger, to passengers or anyone else at the airport," Copenhagen police said.

Threats come amid rise in hybrid attacks in Europe

The origin and motives of the threats were unknown, but come amid a rise in hybrid attacks in Europe, sometimes linked by authorities to Russia or Iran.

France's secretary general for defence and national security, Nicolas Roche, highlighted to parliament last month "the massing of hybrid attacks in all their diversity - sabotage, cyber, drones, espionage of course - that we are seeing take shape in Europe".

On Tuesday, 10 flights were targeted with bomb threats, all of which turned out to be hoaxes.

The alerts forced the closure of a Warsaw airport and the deployment of Italian air force jets to protect flights.

On Monday, a Wizz Air flight from London's Luton airport to Sofia was diverted due a bomb threat and forced to make an emergency stop in Budapest.

Pilots 'equipped to manage high-pressure situtions' - Irish group

The Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (IALPA) said pilots are "highly trained professionals, equipped to manage complex and high-pressure situations, including potential security threats," and whose primary responsibility "remains the safety and security of all passengers and crew".

It said the Aer Lingus incident highlights that any "abnormal or unexpected event increases the workload in the cockpit, placing additional demands on pilots working in an already high-pressure environment".

DAA head of communications Graeme McQueen said he was aware of several threats made against flights across Europe this morning.

Speaking on RTÉ's Today with David McCullagh programme, Mr McQueen said "safety comes first in these instances".

He added: "[It] will be taken very seriously, everything will be investigated there, but thankfully that flight that diverted into France has landed safely this morning."