Hurghada flight diverted after bomb scare
A flight to the Egyptian resort of Hurghada was diverted this morning after a bomb scare.
The pilot of a charter flight, from Poland’s capital Warsaw, requested an emergency landing and the plane was diverted to Burgas Airport, the gateway to Bulgaria’s Black Sea resorts.
All passengers and crew were evacuated while security teams did a sweep of the aircraft.
No explosives were found but the airport remained closed.
The airline, Small Planet, later tweeted that the emergency diversion was due to a passenger hoax.
"Passenger joked about having explosives. All security measures in place," it said.
The scare comes as reports emerged that the bomb which brought down a Russian passenger flight from Sharm el Sheikh last month was placed under a seat in the main cabin.
Russia’s daily newspaper Kommersant quoted ‘a source close to the investigation’ saying an explosive device could have been laid under a passenger seat by the window at the rear of the cabin.
Images have also appeared in the Islamic State’s official magazine showing a Schweppes soft drink can, claiming it was used to make the improvised bomb in the attack.
This morning’s bomb scare is the latest in a number of incidents which have hit travellers amid heightened tensions and tighter security following the Sharm crash and Friday’s terror attacks in Paris.
Gatwick’s North Terminal was evacuated on Saturday and stayed closed for six hours after a security alert, which led to the arrest of a 41-year old French man.
He was remanded in custody after appearing in court on Monday charged with possessing an air rifle and a knife.
Earlier this week, two Air France flights on their way to Paris were diverted after they both received mid-air bomb threats.
Air France flight 65 from Los Angeles was diverted to Salt Lake City, Utah, while Air France flight 55 from Washington was diverted to Halifax, Nova Scotia. They were both found to be false alarms.
Yesterday, hundreds of passengers were evacuated from Copenhagen’s international airport after ‘an overheard conversation about a bomb’.
Trains to the airport and other rail services were also suspended due to the incident, which was found to be another false alarm.
Denmark and Sweden have both raised their terror alerts to the second highest level following Friday’s attacks in Paris and have increased police presence in airports.
Security has been tightened at airports and key tourist sites across Europe following the tragic events in the French capital.
France has declared a national state of emergency for three months and has banned all public gatherings, flying drones and the use of fireworks in Paris and the surrounding area.
It has introduced systematic border control checks at all entry points and has cancelled all school trips until November 22.
Hundreds of extra troops are being deployed in Rome, which is currently preparing for the arrival of millions of pilgrims for Pope Francis’s big Jubilee Year, which starts on December 8.
Italy has announced it will close the airspace over Rome to drones during the celebrations.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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