Oman Air Flight Diverted Due To Bomb Hoax

An Oman Air flight was diverted on Saturday morning after a bomb threat was received targeting the aircraft.

Flight WY 823 from Muscat to Kuala Lumpur was diverted to Mumbai after the pilot was informed of the threat, which later turned out to be a hoax.

The plane landed shortly after midday and a full investigation was carried out by security forces.

In a statement from Oman Air, the airline said it was making arrangements to get its passengers to their final destination as soon as possible.

“Passenger safety is Oman Air’s over-riding concern and any perceived threat to our customers’ well-being is taken extremely seriously,” the statement said.

“We would like to thank customers affected by this incident for their patience and we hope that there will be as little disruption as possible to their travel plans.

“We would also like to thank the aircraft’s Captain and crew for their professionalism and swift reactions, and the airport authorities in Mumbai for their invaluable support.

“Our priority remains to look after our customers and get them to their destination safely and as soon as possible.”

The hoax is the latest in a number of up and down incidents to have befallen the Omani carrier of late. Last week a flight due for Salalah had to return to Muscat shortly after take off after suffering a cracked windscreen.

Also last week, the airline became the first Gulf carrier to order Boeing’s 737-900ER plane, announcing five of the aircraft would be joining its fleet.