New Delhi [India], February 24 : A flight travelling from New York to Delhi was diverted as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of all passengers on board, following a threat email on Monday.
According to Delhi police, an email was received regarding a potential threat to Flight AA-292 (New York to Delhi) on Sunday.
Following standard security protocols, the flight was diverted and safely landed in Rome, Italy.
Police said a complaint was received from the concerned airline on Monday.
Based on the complaint's contents, an FIR has been registered under Sections 217/351(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3 of the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation Act.
The matter is under investigation, and security agencies are taking all necessary measures to ensure passenger safety.
The Delhi-bound American Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner AA 292 non-stop flight from New York to Delhi was forced to divert to Rome.
The flight, with 199 passengers and 15 crew members, was grounded for nearly 15 hours.
The aircraft was just two hours from its destination when it made an abrupt U-turn over the Central Asian country of Turkmenistan due to a "possible security issue."
In a statement, American Airlines said, "American Airlines flight 292, with service from New York (JFK) to Delhi (DEL), diverted to Rome (FCO) due to a possible security concern. The flight landed safely at FCO, and law enforcement inspected and cleared the aircraft to re-depart. Safety and security are our top priorities, and we apologise to our customers for the inconvenience."
Images on social media showed the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner being tailed by two Italian Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes.
Italian Air Force fighter jets escorted the aircraft to Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport, where it landed safely, the airport told ABC News."Safety and security are our top priorities and we thank our customers for their understanding," the airline said in a statement.
A senior official briefed on the matter told ABC News a bomb threat was received by email but was deemed to be unfounded.
Indian authorities had insisted that the aircraft be checked before continuing on to New Delhi, the official said.
Passengers were taken to the terminal for screening, and the aircraft will undergo a thorough inspection.
The Italian Air Force said in a post on X, "Scramble: in the afternoon two Eurofighters of Aeronautica Militare took off on alert to identify and escort a commercial aircraft headed to Delhi which had reversed course towards Fiumicino airport (RM) due to a report of a presumed explosive device on board".