Overview
- Austrian Airlines flight OS82 from Tel Aviv to Vienna declared a general emergency and diverted to Sofia on Sunday after Austrian authorities received an anonymous telephone warning reported to have originated in Vienna.
- The Airbus A320, carrying 51 passengers and six crew, squawked 7700 to signal a general emergency, made a rapid descent and was escorted to a remote stand by a Bulgarian Air Force fighter jet before passengers were evacuated for searches.
- Security teams conducted cabin and cargo inspections in Sofia and have not confirmed an explosive device, and Bulgarian authorities have formed a working group to investigate the anonymous call.
- The airline said passengers will be re‑accommodated on alternative flights once inspections finish, while some reports said a delegation of young UN speakers was among those delayed.
- The incident follows several anonymous bomb warnings affecting flights to and from Israel earlier in the week and highlights how routed threat reports can force overseas diversions, strain airport operations and tighten airline security checks.