Hungarian Gripen jets scrambled 3 times over bomb threats to passenger planes

Hungarian Gripen fighter jets were scrambled three times on Friday morning after bomb threats were reported on board three civilian passenger aircraft flying through Hungarian airspace. NATO issued successive ALPHA SCRAMBLE alerts, prompting the Hungarian Air Force to escort the planes towards neighbouring countries.

Defence Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi announced the incidents on Facebook, explaining that the Hungarian jets had initially been on a training flight when the alerts came in one after another.

The first alert was issued at 9:48 am in connection with an Airbus A321 travelling from Brussels to Sofia. Hungarian fighter jets began escorting the aircraft near Kaposvár in south-western Hungary. After the passenger plane left Hungarian airspace towards Serbia, NATO ordered the Gripens to carry out air patrols near the Serbian border.

A second alert followed at 10:33 am. This time, two aircraft departing from Prague were affected by bomb threats: one was heading to Cyprus and the other to Bucharest. Both planes left Hungarian airspace towards Romania at around 10:45 am. NATO subsequently ordered further air patrols near the Hungarian-Romanian border.

Ruszin-Szendi said the Hungarian military’s fighter jets had been ready to carry out any necessary tasks in all three cases.

Wave of bomb threats disrupting European aviation

This is not the first such incident recently: there has been a wide series of bomb threats targeting passenger flights across Europe in recent days.

According to Telex, seven flights had received threats by Tuesday, with the number rising to 18 by Thursday. Several aircraft have had to divert from their planned destinations or land at alternative airports as a precaution.

Today’s incidents follow an earlier alert on 2 November, when Hungarian Gripens escorted a Wizz Air flight travelling from London to Sofia to Budapest after a bomb threat was reported. The aircraft landed safely at Budapest Airport.

• Details: Wizz Air flight makes emergency landing at Budapest Airport due to bomb threat

Although the threats reported in the recent wave have so far proved to be false, repeated incidents can cause disruption and create panic in an already heavily pressured European aviation system.

The Hungarian fighter jets’ repeated deployment on Friday shows the security measures required when potential threats are reported on civilian aircraft. As the defence minister stressed, protecting national airspace requires constant attention and an immediate response.