BREAKING: 13 Flights of Air India Receive Bomb Threat Messages

New Delhi: string of bomb scares targeting domestic airlines continued on Tuesday, with 13 Air India flights receiving threat messs. Yesterday, 30 domestic and international flights operated by Indian airlines received bomb threats , with three Jeddah-bound IndiGo flights getting diverted to airports in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. flights of IndiGo, Vistara and Air India were among those that received bomb threats, sources in kw said.

13 Flights of Air India Receive Bomb Threat Messs 

In little over a week, more than 120 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats.

Speaking to reporters, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said ministry is looking to amend regulations to ensure strict action is taken. Asked wher re is a conspiracy behind bomb threats, he said, "whatever we kw w are that of individuals and mirs...and pranksters." 

One of Air India flights that received a threat was its Mumbai-London flight. Royal Air Force scrambled a typhoon fighter jet to escort flight and it landed safely at London's Heathrow airport. "We can confirm that RAF Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon fighter aircraft from RAF Coningsby were launched this afteron, to investigate a civilian aircraft," a Royal Air Force spokesperson said.

Following an uneventful interception aircraft was released to continue to its original destination under direction of civilian air traffic control, spokesperson said. Furr, spokesperson said incident is w being handled under control of civilian authorities.

Meanwhile, official sources said about 10 social media handles that issued hoax bomb threats to multiple airliners this week have been suspended or blocked by cyber security ncies till w.

sources told PTI that handles were "analysed" by a joint team of cyber, aviation security and intelligence ncies following which orders were issued to suspend m as y continued to issue "mindless" threats.

Around 10 social media handles, majority of m on X, have been suspended or blocked since Monday, when se hoax bomb and terrorist attack threats started being sent to virtually all Indian airliners for both ir domestic and international route operations, sources said.

ncies have also found some common lines and words used in se fake threats like "bombs", "blood will spre everywhere", "explosive devices", "this is t a joke" and "you will all die" and "bomb rakhwa dia hai" (Hindi for bomb has been placed) among ors.

Beginning Monday, as many as 31 flights of various Indian airlines received bomb threats, including international flights, and some of m were diverted by se social media posted threat messs. Most of threats have turned out to be hoaxes.

sources quoted above said that cyber security ncies, apart from getting police FIRs registered in each such case, have enhanced 'cyber patrolling' on social media and dark web to check for possible links or trends where threats are being posted, leing to grounding or diversion of aircraft.

online surface is being scratched to find primary email registration and geographical locations of se threat-issuing handles, some of which are possibly being prompted from overseas locations, sources said.

se details are being shared with jurisdictional police departments, y said. se fake threats have led to inconveniencing hundreds of passengers and airline crew apart from security ncies. y have taken a heavy toll on airline logistics and operational costs, officials said.

On Thursday a civil aviation ministry official said that ministry plans to put in place strict rms to prevent incidents of hoax bomb threats to airlines, including placing perpetrators on -fly list.

Minister Naidu said ministry is looking at amending civil aviation regulations to ensure strict action in such cases. "We are taking things seriously... we will take action." mir boy of 17 years of from Chhattisgarh has been detained by Mumbai Police in connection with threats posted on X targeting three flights originating from Mumbai on October 14.

Officials said that ministry is also examining provisions followed in foreign countries to deal with such hoax bomb threats.

Furr, official said that if necessary, legislative amendments will be explored for having a strong deterrent to prevent people from making hoax bomb threats to airlines.