An American Airlines flight en route from New York to New Delhi was diverted to Rome on Sunday afternoon following an “alleged bomb scare,” according to an Italian airport spokesman.
The US-based carrier provided no further details regarding the “possible security concern” that prompted the diversion of the flight, which was carrying 199 passengers and crew, and was escorted by two Italian fighter jets before landing.
In a statement, American Airlines confirmed that “the flight landed safely at FCO (Rome), and law enforcement inspected and cleared the aircraft to re-depart.” Mahesh Kumar, an IT consultant on board, recounted that the pilot announced the diversion due to “security reasons” roughly three hours before the scheduled landing. “Everyone was afraid. Everyone was staying quiet and obeying the orders,” the 55-year-old from Texas told AFP. He added, “They asked us to sit down and not to roam around while the fighter jets were near us,” noting that Italian police conducted a security screening upon landing.
The flight had departed from John F. Kennedy International Airport on Saturday at around 8:11 pm local time (01:11 GMT Sunday), and its route showed a sharp turn over the Caspian Sea, according to FlightAware. An American Airlines official later explained, on condition of anonymity, that the plane was diverted to Rome in accordance with Indian protocol requirements, stating, “The possible issue was determined to be non-credible, but per DEL Airport protocol, an inspection was required before landing at DEL.” The flight is scheduled to remain at Rome’s FCO overnight to allow the crew to rest before continuing to New Delhi as soon as possible tomorrow.
Italian airport operations were unaffected by the incident, and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that the plane had landed safely “after the crew reported a security issue.” American Airlines, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, serves over 60 countries through its extensive international operations.
