Akasa Air Flight Makes Emergency Landing In Varanasi After Getting Bombing Threat On Social Media

An Akasa Air flight received an "emergency alert" from the Varanasi Air Traffic Controller, following a bomb threat message on social media.

The Mumbai-Varanasi flight was carrying 159 passengers, 1 infant and 6 operating crew members. ( Image Source :Representational Image/PTI )

Following a bomb threat, an Akasa Air flight made an emergency landing in Varanasi on Friday. The flight, QP 1498, carrying 166 people from Mumbai landed safely after the captain followed all safety protocols. According to news agency PTI, the airline received a bomb threat message on social media. The captain received an "emergency alert" from the Varanasi Air Traffic Controller following which it landed in Varanasi airport.

"At 11:30 AM, Akasa Air got a bomb threat message on social media. We informed the local police in Mumbai and initiated the procedure for filing an FIR," a spokesperson of Akasa airline was quoted by PTI.

Following this the emergency response mechanism was put in place, the airline informed all the 16 airports from where it operates about the bomb threat and put them on alert. The threat was classified as “non-specific”, as per PTI.

"Akasa Air flight QP 1498, flying from Mumbai to Varanasi on September 29, 2023, received an emergency alert from Air Traffic Control. The captain followed all required emergency procedures and landed safely in Varanasi," the airline said in a statement.

The Mumbai-Varanasi flight was carrying 159 passengers, 1 infant and 6 operating crew members. The aircraft landed on a separate runway and passengers deboarded it immediately. 

Later, Varanasi Airport Director Puneet Gupta informed that after a thorough check, the team found nothing objectionable and the aircraft was declared safe. According to ANI, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) conducted the search for about an hour but nothing was found. 

Gupta was reported by ANI as saying, “Everything is normal. When information about the bomb was received, the airport authority took full precautions and checked and everything was found to be normal. This flight was coming to Varanasi only and it had to land here. Yes, as a precautionary measure, it landed on a separate runway.” 

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