Two passenger planes operating flights from Bergamo and Dublin to Sofia were checked at Sofia Airport following reports that bombs had been placed on board. Both aircraft landed safely and were not diverted to other airports. After landing, security services carried out a full inspection of the planes, but no explosive devices were found, Transport and Communications Minister Georgi Peev said, as quoted by BTA.
According to Peev, when a threat is reported, air traffic controllers, the Bulgarian Air Force and the other competent authorities are alerted. The decision about which airport the plane should land at lies with its commander.
“This is a procedure in which action is taken according to protocol. All protocols have been activated,” Georgi Peev said.The minister уточни, че първата задача е да бъде осигурено безопасното приземяване, след което на място се извършва щателна проверка. Той посочи, че част от действията и информацията по процедурата са класифицирани, но увери, че в конкретния случай няма реална опасност за гражданите.
The Pilot Received the Threat Through the Airline
The exact number of passengers on the two planes has not been disclosed. It is also unclear whether the threats were sent by email.
Peev explained that on one of the flights, the pilot received information about the threat through the airline's channels. He then notified air traffic control, which activated the standard protocol.
“The person who first received this information activates a standard protocol, and action is taken according to a checklist,” the minister said. According to him, the procedure is applied in the same way regardless of the number of people on board or the location from which the report was made.
Institutions Also Received Threat Reports
Acting Interior Ministry Secretary General Chief Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov confirmed that bomb threats had also been made during the day against various state institutions, as well as against an aircraft linked to Sofia Airport. The established security procedures were activated in response.