A Vistara flight from Mumbai to Frankfurt was diverted to the Erzurum airport in Turkey’s eastern region Friday owing to a “security concern”, the airline said. Vistara did not elaborate, but sources aware of the matter indicated that it was a bomb threat that had forced the diversion.
The sources said the threat appeared to be in the form of a written message, noticed by a cabin crew member in one of the lavatories of the Boeing 787 aircraft.
“Vistara flight UK 27 operating from Mumbai to Frankfurt on 06 September 2024 has been diverted to Turkey due to a security concern that was noted by our crew while onboard. The aircraft has safely landed at the Erzurum Airport. As per protocol, the relevant authorities were immediately alerted and we are fully cooperating with the security agencies to complete the mandatory security checks. At Vistara, the safety and security of our customers, crew, and aircraft remain our highest priority,” said a Vistara spokesperson.
So far, it is unclear if the threat was a hoax. If that turns out to be the case once the aircraft’s security inspection is complete, the plane will be allowed to fly on to Frankfurt. Over the past few months, a number of Indian carriers’ flights have received fake bomb threats.
As per information available on flight tracking service Flightradar24, the aircraft operating the flight and bearing registration VT-TSQ squawked 7700, which indicates a general emergency, at around 6:20 pm IST. It had taken off from Mumbai a little over five hours earlier and was three-and-a-half hours away from Frankfurt.
After the aircraft landed at the Erzurum airport, passengers were evacuated and bomb disposal teams were dispatched to inspect the plane as per the security protocol, it is learnt. Given that an emergency had been declared at the Erzurum airport, all flight operations from the airport were temporarily suspended.