An emergency was declared on an Air India flight from Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (BOM) to Trivandrum International Airport (TRV) in India after a bomb threat was found in the aircraft’s lavatory.
According to Press Trust of India, an Air India pilot contacted air traffic control on August 22, 2024, when a “bomb in flight” note was discovered on tissue paper in the lavatory.
The threat was declared at 07:36, local time, after it was reported a few minutes earlier by the crew.
The Airbus A320-251N, with 135 passengers on board, landed at TRV shortly after 07:50 and was immediately isolated at the airport by security personnel.
Kerala: Visuals of the #AirIndia flight AI657 which received a #bombthreat today.
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) August 22, 2024
The flight has landed safely at Thiruvananthapuram Airport and has been parked in a remote bay for the mandatory checks by security agencies. All passengers and crew disembarked safely. pic.twitter.com/RbSRjrWcdw
The aircraft, which departed Mumbai before 06:00, was inspected by trained professionals who eventually allowed those on board to deplane at around 08:45.
“There has been no impact on life. Airport operations are currently uninterrupted,” TRV said in a statement according to Times of India.
Commenting on the incident, a spokesperson for Air India said that “the crew carried out all the laid down security drills keeping passenger safety as top priority” and that “all passengers and crew disembarked safely”.
Police have reportedly launched an investigation into the circumstances behind the bomb threat aboard the A320neo.
