Air India flight escorted by Singapore fighter jets after latest hoax bomb threat

Singapore’s air force mobilised two fighter jets late on Tuesday in response to a bomb threat on an Air India Express flight bound for the city-state, its defence minister said.

Two Singapore air force F-15SG jets scrambled and escorted Air India flight AXB684 away from populated areas after the airline received an email that there was a bomb on board its plane, Ng Eng Hen said in a Facebook post.

It was the third confirmed incident in two days involving a threat against an Air India plane.

Ng said the plane was escorted and landed safely at Changi Airport at 10.04pm on Tuesday, adding that Singapore’s ground based air defence systems and explosive disposal team were also activated.

“Once on the ground, the plane was handed to the airport police,” Ng said.

The police said “no threat items were found” on board the plane after completing security checks, adding that investigations were ongoing.

“The police take security threats seriously and will not hesitate to take action against those who intentionally cause public alarm,” it said in an emailed statement.

Air India did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But it said on social media that another of its flights bound for Chicago had landed in Canada as a precautionary measure on Tuesday after a security threat posted online.

India’s flagship carrier said it and other airlines had been subject to “a number of threats” in recent days. On Monday, an Air India flight from Mumbai to New York was diverted to Delhi after a false bomb threat. The country’s low-cost carrier IndiGo reported threats made against two flights that were bound for Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and Muscat in Oman.