Wave of bomb threats against European airliners triggers diversions and tarmac searches

LONDON — A bomb threat forced a passenger ​plane carrying more than 150 people ⁠to Rome to make an emergency landing in a French Air Force base Thursday.

“Flight EI402 from Dublin to Rome diverted to Normandy this morning as a security precaution,” Irish carrier Aer Lingus said in a statement, adding that the plane had landed safely.

Earlier, the office ⁠of French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said it was monitoring the situation after what it called a “bomb alert.”

Later, his office said a bomb squad was in place at the Évreux-Fauville Air and Space Force base and that the 151 passengers and six crew aboard the flight had been moved to a safe place.

Tracking website FlightRadar24 showed that just over one hour into its journey, the Airbus 320 was flying normally, cruising at 37,000 feet just west of Paris. It then started descending, making a series of loops, before landing at Evreux Fauville Air Base.

Including Thursday’s incident, at least nine flights in Europe have been subjected to bomb threats this week, forcing some to divert and an airport in Poland to briefly close. No explosive devices have been found, according to authorities in various countries.

A security operation was also launched at the Greek island port ⁠of Syros on Tuesday after a bomb threat ​to an Israel-bound cruise ship. Authorities said an unknown person claimed an explosive device had been attached to ⁠the hull of the Panama-flagged Crown Iris that was due to sail ⁠to Haifa.

Authorities have not indicated who could have been behind the incidents and there were no claims of responsibility.