An Austrian Airlines aircraft traveling from Tel Aviv to Vienna made an emergency landing in the Bulgarian capital Sofia on Sunday evening after a report was received alleging that a bomb was on board.
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Bulgaria’s Ministry of Transport and Communications said the aircraft diverted and landed in Sofia following the bomb threat, according to Reuters, which noted that it was unable to independently verify the report.
Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported that the airline received a message from an Austrian citizen claiming that there was a bomb on board after the aircraft had left Israeli airspace. Passengers were informed that an anonymous security threat had been reported.
After the aircraft landed in Bulgaria, passengers were evacuated and the plane was searched. Authorities confirmed that no dangerous materials were found.
Israel’s public broadcaster reported that Flight OS82, operated by an Airbus A320-214, departed Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv at around 7:04 p.m. before a bomb threat was reported near the Bulgarian-Romanian border.
The aircraft’s captain declared an emergency and diverted the flight to Sofia Airport, where it landed at around 7:42 p.m. Emergency response teams and security personnel were deployed at the airport.
An airport spokesperson said all passengers and crew members were safe and unharmed. They were evacuated under the supervision of Bulgarian security authorities, while the aircraft was moved to an isolated area for inspection by bomb disposal and security teams.
The Israeli Air Force, meanwhile, confirmed that the incident did not occur within or near Israeli airspace and said it was not involved in handling the incident.
No explosives were reported to have been found on board the aircraft, according to the information available about the incident.
