An Akasa Air flight en route to Bengaluru was forced to return to Delhi after receiving a bomb threat on Wednesday, adding to a series of recent security alerts affecting multiple airlines in the past two days.
The flight, carrying 174 passengers, including three infants and seven crew members, was diverted to Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport as a precautionary measure. The airline’s Emergency Response Team monitored the situation closely.
“Akasa Air flight QP 1335, operating from Delhi to Bengaluru on October 16, 2024, received a security alert. The pilot was advised to divert the flight back to Delhi as a precaution,” said an Akasa Air spokesperson. “The captain followed all emergency protocols to ensure a safe landing, with the estimated arrival time being 14:00 hrs.”
The spokesperson assured passengers that ground teams were prepared to provide assistance and ensure their safety and comfort upon arrival.
In a similar incident, an IndiGo flight operating from Mumbai to Delhi was also diverted to Ahmedabad due to a security alert. “Flight 6E 651 was redirected, the aircraft was isolated, and all passengers were safely disembarked,” an IndiGo spokesperson said. “Ensuring the safety and security of our passengers and crew is our top priority.”
These incidents follow a series of hoax threats received yesterday. Among them were Air India flight AI119 from Mumbai to New York’s JFK Airport, and IndiGo flights 6E1275 to Muscat and 6E56 to Jeddah.
Amid the growing number of threats, the central government has decided to double the number of sky marshals on flights originating from Indian airports. A senior official from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said the decision was made after consultations with intelligence agencies.
Units from the National Security Guard (NSG), trained in anti-terror and anti-hijacking operations, are deployed as air marshals on sensitive domestic and international routes. Sky marshals, armed and traveling in plain clothes, play a critical role in preventing hijackings.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has also scheduled a high-level meeting to address the recent surge in bomb threats. Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu held discussions with officials from the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, CISF, and other agencies to bolster security at airports nationwide.
Sky marshals were first introduced in India in 1999 after the hijacking of Air India flight IC 814 to Kandahar. The role of these officers is to travel with passengers on commercial aircraft and take swift action in case of any security threat.
(Inputs from ANI)