'Bomb on plane': Handwritten note in toilet forces diversion of IndiGo Delhi–Bagdogra flight; threat later declared hoax

LUCKNOW: An IndiGo Delhi-Bagdogra flight with 230 passengers and seven crew members was on Sunday diverted to Lucknow after a mid-air bomb warning, prompting evacuations and searches of over seven hours before the authorities declared the threat a hoax.

Investigations revealed a handwritten note in the rear lavatory which read: “Bomb on the plane”. Authorities also said the plane’s luggage hold had radioactive material in a cancer medicine package (with NOC).


Officials said Lucknow’s Air Traffic Control (ATC) received the alert from flight 6E-6650 at 8.46am.

The aircraft made an emergency landing at 9.17am and was immediately moved to an isolation bay.

A Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) was constituted. Quick Reaction Teams (QRT) cordoned off the aircraft. Bomb-disposal squads and security agencies ran checks. After an all-clear late in the afternoon, the plane left for Bagdogra at 4.30pm. The flight had 222 passengers, eight infants, two pilots, and five hostesses.

"Following the established protocol, we informed the relevant authorities immediately. As always, safety and security of our customers, crew and aircraft are our topmost priorities," IndiGo said in a statement.

According to the airline, all efforts were made to minimise inconvenience to the passengers, who were offered refreshments and regular updates.

Late Sunday evening, Lucknow Police announced a formal probe and an FIR over the threat. "We received a complaint from Vineet Kumar of IndiGo and, after a preliminary probe, will register an FIR," additional DCP Vasanth Kumar said.

Meanwhile, officials at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) disclosed that they had received an email last week warning of an explosion on Jan 14. A search proved it to be a hoax. Two days later, the officials had a criminal case filed.