Bomb threats and a hybrid war
Dozens of flights across Europe, including Romania, were targeted by hoax bomb threats.
Roxana Vasile, 06.11.2026, 13:50
New hoax bomb threats targeted aircraft at Otopeni, Romania’s largest airport, the Romanian Intelligence Service announced on Thursday evening. One threat concerned a KLM flight bound for Tel Aviv, with a stopover in Bucharest. The pilots requested a security check, following which the Intelligence Service confirmed that no explosive device was found on board. A second alert was non-specific and did not require any special measures, the Romanian Intelligence Service said.
Earlier on Thursday, around midday, a crisis cell was activated at Otopeni Airport in response to a bomb threat against a Wizz Air flight arriving from Milan. The 182 passengers and seven crew members were disembarked, and an intelligence service bomb squad inspected the aircraft to establish if the threat was real. No explosive device was found, allowing airport operations to continue as normal. Another alert, also unconfirmed, targeted an Air Serbia flight arriving from Belgrade.
Bucharest was one of the many cities reporting a wave of hoax bomb threats and which affected at least 20 flights, as well as airport activity in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, France, Italy and Poland. On Tuesday, a number of bomb threats had already led to the activation of extensive security measures. The France-Presse news agency notes that these hoaxes come at a time of intensifying hybrid attacks in Europe and which are suspected to be the work of Russia and in some cases, Iran.
It is worth noting that the threats sent to airports in Sofia and Rome were signed by the so-called “Male State” fighters. A far-right, misogynistic movement of its name exists in Russia, but France Presse was unable to confirm whether the group is behind the wave of bomb threats targeting air travel. Russian extremists associated with this group use Nazi symbols and support the war in Ukraine, primarily through propaganda. An expert cited by France Presse said that, prior to the invasion of Ukraine, in October 2021, the movement had been designated as extremist by the Russian judiciary. However, the extent of its cooperation with the Russian authorities at this moment remains unknown.
Against this backdrop, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency has announced that it will continue to monitor developments and assess potential implications for aviation safety that might arise from such threats. Meanwhile, the deputy spokesperson for Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, said the organisation is prepared to support national authorities, upon request, in cases where threats are linked to serious organised crime or terrorism. This support includes facilitating the exchange of information and identifying potential connections between different countries.
