A Ryanair Boeing 737 MAX 8 was reportedly involved in a bomb-threat incident at Palermo Airport in Sicily, Italy. The threat was later confirmed to be a false alarm, and no one was injured.

The Incident

Ryanair flight FR7376 from Milan Malpensa Airport(MXP) landed at Palermo Airport on the 17th of March at 20:20 local time. The aircraft, a Boeing 737 MAX 8-200, registered as 9H-QCL taxied off runway 07 and headed for the gates. However, the crew quickly became notified of a possible bomb threat onboard the aircraft.

According to reports, the aircraft had 190 passengers plus crew onboard, all of whom were consequently evacuated safely.

The airport fire service, police, and bomb disposal experts quickly rushed to the unfolding scene at the popular holiday destination to investigate the report. Luckily, the threat was a false alarm, and no one was harmed. The entire incident lasted roughly 30-45 minutes.

As a result of the incident, Palermo Airport was closed and the airport no longer took arrivals or departures for the time. This caused three flights to be diverted to other airports on the Sicilian island.

According to information from Flightradar24.com, ITA Airways flight AZ179, also from Milan, was placed in a holding pattern just northwest of the airport. It diverted to Catania (CTA). Vueling flight VY6922 from Florence was placed in the same holding pattern and followed the ITA Airways flight to Catania. Finally, another Ryanair flight FR2020 from Budapest was placed in a holding pattern and followed suit to Catania.

When emergency services arrived at the aircraft, all the luggage onboard was reportedly checked by police and airport security to make sure nothing was out of the ordinary. Simple Flying has reached out to Ryanair for a statement and will update the article once one is made available.

Not the first incident

This is not the first time this year that a bomb threat has been reported on a Ryanair flight. In late January, a Ryanair flight from Poland to Greece was met with two Greek F-16 Fighter jets and made to land at Athens International Airport. A suspected bomb onboard was reported to the authorities. The Greek Defence Ministry said that the airliner was previously escorted by Hungarian fighter jets before being handed over to the Greeks.

When the Boeing 737 landed, it taxied to a remote part of the airport, far away from the terminal and the public where it was surrounded by police and airport security.

It was later discovered that it was a false alarm and, similarly to the incident in Palermo, no bomb was discovered on the aircraft. In a statement about the incident in Greece, the low-cost airline Ryanair said that there was a "potential security threat onboard.”

“Passengers disembarked normally and local authorities carried out a standard security search before clearing the aircraft to return to service.”

It is still unclear how or why the threat was made against the Ryanair flight, said officials. However, it is said that the threat was made whilst the plane was still in Polish airspace.

Source: LBC News, Flightradar24.com, The Mirror

What do you think of the incident involving the Ryanair plane? Let us know in the comments below.

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  Ryanair

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  FR/RYR

  Airline Type:

  Low-Cost Carrier

  Hub(s):

  Dublin Airport, London Stansted Airport, Milan Bergamo Airport

  Year Founded:

  1985

  Airline Group:

  Ryanair Group

  CEO:

  Eddie Wilson

  Country:

  Ireland