Hoax Hijack Threat Delays Air India Flight From Kolkata to Mumbai

A hijack threat discovered in an aircraft lavatory stopped an Air India flight from leaving Kolkata for Mumbai on November 11. India Today reported that the flight was grounded before takeoff.

Accounts differ on the form of the message. NDTV Top Stories, citing sources, said it was written on a lavatory mirror. Times of India Kolkata described a threat note found in the washroom and reported that it threatened a hijacking at 11.10am.

The security alert began before the aircraft departed on November 11. India News identified the service as flight AI 772 to Mumbai and the aircraft as an Airbus A320neo.

The pilot alerted air traffic control, according to India News. The report said the aircraft was moved to an isolation bay following the alert.

All passengers who had boarded were taken off the aircraft before it was moved to the isolation bay, The Hindu reported. The available coverage does not give a passenger count.

Searches were subsequently reported under way by The Shillong Times. The supplied reports do not include their findings.

The latest coverage places the aircraft in an isolation bay, with passengers off the plane and searches under way, according to The Hindu and The Shillong Times.

The reports describe a hijack threat, not a confirmed hijacking. They do not establish who left the message, whether it was credible or whether the aircraft had been cleared to fly.

The immediate questions are what the searches find and whether the aircraft is cleared for departure. The supplied coverage gives no revised departure time or confirmed arrangements for the passengers.