Aer Lingus jet diverts to Normandy airbase after bomb threat

An Airbus A320 operated by Aer Lingus changed its route from Dublin to Rome on Thursday, diverting to a military airbase in Evreux, Normandy. The French prime minister's office confirmed the aircraft was rerouted following a bomb threat. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's team is monitoring the situation, though the government has not released further details on the incident.

Flightradar24 data shows the plane declared an emergency near Paris before circling the Evreux area. This event follows a string of disruptions across the continent. On Tuesday, authorities reported that approximately 10 European flights received bomb threats. The threats forced the temporary closure of an airport in Warsaw and led Italian air force jets to escort a Finnair flight from Helsinki to Rome.

A separate account of the Tuesday incidents cited threats against seven flights and one cruise ship. No explosive devices were found in those cases. The disruption affected services operated by LOT, Scandinavian Airlines, Wizz Air, and Ryanair. On Thursday, Belgian media reported that a LOT aircraft was forced to land at Brussels' Zaventem airport.

Bulgarian authorities also reported three emergency landings linked to bomb threats. The interior minister said two planes, departing from Copenhagen and Madrid, landed in Sofia. Local media reported a third aircraft from London landed in Plovdiv. These incidents follow a similar threat on Wednesday, when a flight bound for Bulgaria was diverted to Hungary. No passengers were injured in that earlier diversion.

European officials have accused Russia and Iran of conducting sabotage and hybrid attacks. Both Moscow and Tehran deny involvement in such a campaign. No single country has been assigned responsibility for the recent wave of threats. The pattern of disruption aligns with what experts describe as low-cost attacks that allow perpetrators to maintain plausible deniability.

Unidentified hackers also shut down supermarket refrigerators in several European countries this week. The combination of airspace threats and digital disruptions has created operational challenges for airlines and airports. The Evreux diversion marks the latest instance in a series of events that have tested emergency protocols across the region.

The French government is continuing its review of the Aer Lingus incident. Authorities in Belgium, Italy, and Bulgaria are also processing reports from their respective landings. The airline has not yet issued a statement regarding the specific flight number or the number of passengers on board the diverted aircraft.