NEW DELHI: An IndiGo flight from Kuwait to Hyderabad was diverted to Mumbai early Tuesday morning after two bomb-threat emails were received at Hyderabad airport.
According to flight-tracking platform Flightradar24, the Airbus A321 aircraft took off from Kuwait International Airport at 1:56 am local time on December 2, about forty minutes behind schedule. The aircraft was airborne when the decision to divert it midway was taken.
A source at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport said, “We received two emails threatening that a bomb had been placed on flight 6E12434, which was on its way to our airport from Kuwait.” After receiving the alert, airport authorities informed the airline, and the cockpit crew decided to divert the aircraft to Mumbai.
The threat was later declared a hoax following intensive security checks at Hyderabad airport.
An IndiGo spokesperson confirmed the security threat and diversion. In a statement, the airline said, “A security threat was received for IndiGo flight 6E1234 operating from Kuwait to Hyderabad on 2nd December, due to which the aircraft was diverted to Mumbai. Following established protocol, we informed the relevant authorities immediately and fully cooperated with them in carrying out the necessary security checks before the aircraft was cleared for operations.”
The spokesperson added, “We made all efforts to minimise inconvenience to our customers, including offering them refreshments and sharing regular updates. As always, the safety and security of our customers, crew and aircraft are our top priorities.”
An official at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport said, “After the flight received the necessary clearances from Mumbai, flight 6E1234 reached Hyderabad today at 3:44 pm.” The flight had originally been scheduled to arrive at 8:10 am.