US-Bound Flight Gets Bomb Threat At Hyderabad Airport, $1 Million Demanded

The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad was placed under intensive security surveillance on Tuesday morning following a fresh bomb threat targeting a US-bound flight, marking the second such incident in less than 48 hours.

Just a short while later, Lok Bhavan, the recently renamed Governor's office, and the Chief Minister's Office also reportedly received similar, vague bomb threat emails, prompting the authorities to widen the security alert across the city's key institutions.

The bomb threat at RGIA was received via an email, with the sender, allegedly identifying himself as "Jasper" from the United States, claiming that an explosive device had been planted on a specific flight scheduled to depart for the US.

The email reportedly contained a ransom demand, stating the explosive would only be deactivated if a sum of $1 million was paid.

Security personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and the airport's dedicated security units immediately launched a massive search operation.

Intensive, minute-by-minute checks were initiated across the main terminal building, cargo zones, parking areas, and all aircraft scheduled for international departures.

As a precautionary measure, passengers were subjected to additional and stringent security screenings, leading to minor delays.

As of this afternoon, the authorities have confirmed that no suspicious object has been found at the airport. However, security has been significantly heightened across all sensitive zones.

The police have registered a case and started an investigation.

Cybercrime teams have been roped in to trace the email's origin and authenticity, trying to determine if it is a genuine terrorist threat or part of a series of targeted hoax messages.

This latest threat at the airport follows a troubling incident just two days prior.

On the night of December 7, the Hyderabad airport received three bomb threat emails targeting major international carriers: British Airways (BA 277) from Heathrow, Lufthansa (LH 752) from Frankfurt, and an IndiGo flight (6E 7178) from Kannur. All three were found to be fake.