Bomb threat forcing Indian flight to land in Turkey unfounded: Official

Ankara: A bomb threat, which caused a flight operated by India’s Vistara Airlines to make an emergency landing in Erzurum, eastern Turkey two days ago has turned out to be false, according to the local governor.

“We have concluded all search and examination activities and have determined that the bomb threat was unfounded,” Erzurum Governor Mustafa Ciftci told reporters on Saturday.

As a result, the flight ban at Erzurum’s airport has been lifted, he said, noting that an alternate flight from Mumbai, India, has been arranged for the stranded passengers to continue their journey, Xinhua news agency reported.

A Vistara spokesperson had said flight UK27 from Mumbai to Frankfurt diverted due to “a security concern”. The flight landed at Erzurum at 4.30 p.m. local time.

“As of 23:30, we have completed all search and examination operations. As a result of the work we carried out, we found that the bomb threat was unfounded,” Ciftci told reporters at the airport.

“All flights coming or leaving from our province will now be able to fly comfortably,” he said.

Vistara said in a post on X that customers, crew and the aircraft were cleared by security agencies and that all necessary checks were conducted.

The airline also said it was sending an alternate aircraft to Turkey by 12:25 p.m. local time on Saturday to take the passengers to Frankfurt.

The plane en route from Mumbai to Frankfurt made an emergency landing in eastern Turkey on Friday following a bomb threat.

Turkish authorities said a note reading “bomb on board” was discovered in a lavatory on the aircraft, prompting the plane, with 247 passengers and crew on board, to make an emergency landing.

—