An Air India Express plane was swiftly evacuated after it was forced to make an emergency landing following receipt of a bomb threat whilst airborne on Wednesday afternoon.
The flight, which originated in Mumbai and was bound for Varanasi, was carrying 176 passengers and crew members.
The security threat prompted the immediate implementation of emergency protocols at Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport.
Following the hurried touchdown, emergency response teams shepherded to the plane to a designated isolation area.
All 176 occupants were speedily evacuated from the aircraft, mercifully without incident.
Bomb disposal experts were then deployed to conduct comprehensive security inspections of the plane.
A thorough search of the plane turned up no suspicious items.
The aircraft remains in the isolation bay pending completion of mandatory security procedures before returning to regular service.
An Air India Express plane was forced to make an emergency landing after a midair bomb threat
|GETTY
In a statement, an Air India Express spokesman stated: “The flight landed safely, and all guests have been disembarked.”
"One of our flights to Varanasi received a security threat. In line with protocol, the Government-appointed Bomb Threat Assessment Committee was immediately alerted, and all necessary security procedures promptly initiated," he continued.
"The flight landed safely and all guests have been disembarked. The aircraft will be released for operations once all mandated security checks are completed," the spokesman added.
Air India Express, a budget carrier which operates as a subsidiary of Air India, was in close coordination with government security agencies throughout the incident response.
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All 176 occupants were speedily evacuated from the aircraft, mercifully without incident
|GETTY
Wednesday’s security alert extended to other Indian airlines, with IndiGo receiving digital threats targeting five prominent Indian airports.
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Thiruvananthapuram airports were named in the security communication, prompting heightened alert status at these major transport hubs.
The parallel timing of the incidents may suggest a potentially coordinated campaign to target Indian aviation infrastructure.
The terrifying incident comes just months after the tragic crash of an Air Indian plane en route to the UK, which left 250 people dead.
On June 12, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed in the residential area of Meghani Nagar in Ahmedabad, killing 241 people on board and 19 more on the ground.
The flight had been heading to Gatwick when it crashed.
It left only one survivor: Indian-born British citizen Vishwas Kumar Ramesh.
Investigations remain ongoing into the tragedy.
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