American Airlines Flight AA292 departed John F Kennedy International Airport at on February 22 and was scheduled to arrive in New Delhi. However, halfway through the journey, while flying over Turkmenistan, the aircraft made an unexpected U-turn due to a reported security issue. The aircraft diverted to Rome and landed safely at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport under military escort.
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner was carrying 199 passengers and 15 crew members. “American flight AA292 will divert to Rome en route to Delhi due to a bomb threat,” flight-tracking account Flight Emergency posted on X. A source familiar with the situation said the bomb threat was specifically towards Flight AA292 and was sent via email.
American Airlines said in a statement that Flight AA292 was traveling from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Indira Gandhi International Airport before it diverted to Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport “due to a possible security issue.” The airline added later that it “was determined to be non-credible.” Per Indira Gandhi International Airport’s protocol, an inspection was required before the plane landed there. “Safety and security are our top priorities and we apologize to our customers for the inconvenience,” the airline said in a statement.
“We immediately agreed and organized a safe landing,” Roberto Rao, a spokesperson for the airport said in an NBC News report. “We don’t know what the security concern was, but my opinion is that it was serious enough to divert the plane, but not urgent, because we received the alert when the plane was over the Caspian Sea, a three hours’ flight from Rome.” The flight was escorted by two Italian air force fighter jets once in Italian airspace.
American Airlines said the plane was met by local law enforcement upon its arrival to Rome, inspected and cleared to depart again for New Delhi.