Security agencies at Mumbai and Delhi airports were put on high alert early Monday morning after receiving bomb threats via social media, purportedly from a group claiming to be terrorists from Pakistan. The threat specifically targeted an Air India flight from Mumbai to New York (AI 119), prompting immediate action from authorities.
At 3:30 a.m., Air India received two messages on social media platform X, allegedly from a user named Fazluddin Nirban. The posts claimed that the flight, VT-AER AI 119, was carrying 6 kg of RDX along with six terrorists onboard and was set to be hijacked. The message read, “This flight will be hijacked in the next 20 minutes and will be blown up in the sky. Today India will cry. Pakistan Zindabad.”
The Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) quickly declared the threat as “specific,” and the Air India flight was immediately diverted to Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi, where it landed at around 4 a.m.
Upon landing, all 239 passengers and 19 crew members were thoroughly screened, and the entire aircraft was searched. Usha Rangnani, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) at Delhi Airport, confirmed that no suspicious items were found onboard. “Following standard security protocols, a thorough inspection was conducted, and no suspicious items were found,” she said.
Air India issued a statement, ensuring passengers that their safety was the airline’s top priority. “The flight has been rescheduled to the morning of October 15,” said an Air India spokesperson, who also added that passengers were provided refreshments and would be moved to hotels after security checks were completed.
In addition to the Air India flight, two Indigo flights operating from Mumbai to Muscat and Jeddah were also targeted with similar bomb threats. The aircraft were moved to isolated bays, and mandatory security checks were conducted. No suspicious items were found in these instances either, according to an Indigo spokesperson.
Authorities are continuing their investigation into the origin of these social media threats, which have since been removed from the platform.
