‘I’m carrying live bomb,’ says passenger triggering panic at Kochi airport

Kochi: The Cochin International Airport witnessed yet another incident of a hoax bomb threat on Monday, with a passenger claiming he was carrying a ‘live bomb’. The passenger, Vijay Mandhayan, made the verbal threat before boarding his flight.

“A verbal bomb threat was received from a passenger during secondary ladder point check of Vistara flight,” CIAL said in a communique. “I’m carrying a live bomb,” the passenger reportedly said in a casual remark. The flight was scheduled to leave for Mumbai from Kochi at 3.50 pm.
Following the incident, which was declared ‘non-specific,’ a Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) was convened. The flight departed at 4.19 pm. On Saturday, a Kochi-Bengaluru Alliance flight underwent a BTAC following a bomb threat.
The Alliance flight remained grounded for nearly five hours following the threat. In one week, nearly 100 domestic airline flights have received bomb threats at various Indian airports.Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Monday that the government has planned to place the perpetrators on a no-fly list.