13 people held for making hoax bomb threats
Hyderabad: As many as 728 hoax bomb threats have been received by airline operators in 2024 and 13 persons have been arrested in 2024 in connection with hoax bomb threats, according to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA).
This was stated by the Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol while responding to a question on “Bomb threat calls to various airlines across the country” posed by Parimal Nathwani in Rajya Sabha three days ago.
As per Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), an aviation security regulator in the country, a total of 728 hoax bomb threats have been received by airline operators in 2024 and 13 persons have been arrested in 2024 in connection with hoax bomb threats.
Out of 728 calls, Indigo airline received 216 calls, which is the highest followed by 179 calls by Air India and 153 calls by Vistara.
The BCAS has mandated robust protocols for handling such threats. Bomb Threat Contingency Plan (BTCP), a detailed contingency plan, is in place to handle such threats. As a part of BTCP, every airport has a designated Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) which analyses the threat and acts accordingly.
In order to deal with hoax bomb threats, BCAS has issued advisories to all the Civil Aviation stakeholders in the country to ensure streamlined security measures and to prevent any unlawful interference with civil aviation.
