'Sonic boom' heard over Norfolk as RAF fighter jets scrambled following 'bomb threat' aboard Heathrow-bound flight
17 October 2024, 13:59
A 'sonic boom' has been heard over Norfolk after an RAF Typhoon raced to intercept a Heathrow-bound flight following a 'bomb threat' on board.
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The Royal Air Force fighter jet was launched to guide the commercial flight, believed to be an Air India flight from Mumbai, as it circled off the east coast of the UK.
The jet's flight path was seen to pass over Norwich at the time of the boom, before circling and heading out to sea.
It's believed the bomb threat made related to the Boeing 777 aircraft, with Flight AIC129 from Mumbai forced to circle off the UK coast to burn off fuel as a precaution.
"Really loud bang and house just shook, in Salhouse, Norfolk," one social media user wrote, adding: "Me and neighbours all out in street."
"Was it a sonic boom? Anyone else hear it? Hopefully something hasn't blown up," they added.
Sonic boom over Norfolk from Typhoon. Was it a response to that emergency??? pic.twitter.com/BBkhR2CyOq
— doodlewhale🎗️ (@doodlewhale) October 17, 2024
Another wrote that the sonic boom "shook the whole house".
It comes amid reports that at least 19 Indian flights have received hoax bomb threats since Monday.
A sonic boom occurs when when shock waves are created after an object travels through the air faster than the speed of sound.
One social media user responded: "Our whole house just SHOOK from a sonic boom 💀"
Read more: BA cancels 'hundreds' of flights due to shortage of engine parts
On Wednesday, an Air Akasa flight headed to Bengaluru city was redirected to Delhi following a bomb threat.
Just one day before Singapore's Air Force scrambled two fighter jets to escord an Air India Express plane following a bomb threat.
Other incidents have seen an Air India plane from Delhi to Chicago diverted to Canada, while IndiGo and SpiceJet were among the other flights affected.
The UK-bound flight has since landed at Heathrow following the RAF escort.
In a statement, Heathrow Airport said: "We can confirm the aircraft has landed safely."
