Wizz Air flight from London in emergency landing after bomb threat

Image source, Reuters

A file photo of a Wizz Air plane on the tarmac at Ferenc Liszt International Airport in Budapest

A Wizz Air flight travelling from London Luton Airport to Sofia has been escorted by a Hungarian fighter jet to Budapest after a mid-air bomb threat.

The aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International.

Authorities there “carried out the necessary security checks on the aircraft and passengers”, a spokesperson for Wizz Air said.

The airline later confirmed an inspection had been “completed and nothing was found”, adding that the plane would depart again shortly. Hungarian Defence Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendis confirmed his country provided the fighter jet to escort the flight.

According to flight tracking website FlightAware, Wizz Air flight 4302 departed Luton at 08:33 GMT and was due to arrive in the Bulgarian capital at 13:25 local time (11:25 GMT).

But the website said it landed in Budapest at 12:09 local time (11:09 GMT).

In a post on social media, Ruszin-Szendis said that after receiving the bomb threat, the Wizz Air flight had requested permission to land at the airport in Budapest.

“Within minutes, a Hungarian Defence Forces Gripen fighter jet took to the skies and provided an escort for the passenger aircraft”, he said.

After this, the jet returned to its base and police took charge of the incident, he added.

The airline said that after the plane made the emergency landing, it taxied “to a designated stand” where the security checks were carried out.

Wizz Air added that it was “cooperating fully with the authorities”, and that the safety of passengers and crew “remains our highest priority”.

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