A Mumbai-bound Air India flight was grounded under emergency conditions at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport on Wednesday morning following a handwritten hijack threat found inside an aircraft lavatory.
The threat scrawled directly onto a lavatory mirror was discovered while the plane was taxiing for takeoff. The pilot immediately alerted Air Traffic Control (ATC) with triggering emergency aviation protocols.
The aircraft was steered to an isolated bay away from active runways and main terminals. Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel and specialized bomb disposal units quickly cordoned off the area and launched a comprehensive security check.
Security teams are conducting detailed inspections of the cabin, airframe and cargo hold to screen for suspicious objects or explosive devices. Passengers were safely evacuated to the terminal.
A multi-agency investigation involving local police and intelligence agencies is underway. Investigators are auditing cabin logs and reviewing terminal CCTV footage to trace the perpetrator responsible for the threat.
