Recently, bomb threats targeting various airports and airlines in India have dominated headlines, capturing national attention. The Union Minister for Civil Aviation also proposed to amend Aircraft Security Rules to include those responsible for making ‘Hoax Bomb Threats’ into the ‘No Fly List’. Data indicates that a total of 300 passengers were placed on the ‘No Fly List’ between 2020 and 2024.
Transportation and connectivity are vital drivers of national and global economies. However, the sector faces significant challenges, including security concerns that impact both authorities and passengers, with far-reaching effects on governments and the public.
Recently, bomb threats targeting various airports and airlines in India have dominated headlines, capturing national attention. A particularly alarming threat came from Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, designated as an extremist by the Indian government, who warned international travellers against flying with Air India between 01 November and 19 November 2024. He claimed an attack could occur in retaliation for the Sikh genocide that happened 40 years ago in India. A similar warning was issued by Pannun last year, specifically urging members of the Sikh community to avoid Air India flights on 19 November.
According to media reports, around 170 bomb threats have been received by different airlines in India over the past few weeks. While most of these threats were deemed hoaxes by authorities, they still created widespread panic among passengers, commuters, and other stakeholders, leading to some flights being diverted. The economic impact has been significant, with The Economic Times report estimating airline losses at approximately ₹600 crores due to these disruptions. In response, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu held a press conference to address the security situation at airports and discussed proposed changes to aviation laws aimed at ensuring safer travel.
In light of these developments, we look at the frequency of threats in recent years, and some measures taken by the government.
Increase in India’s Air Traffic and number of Airports
India is the third-largest aviation market in the world. The Aviation Ministry’s recent 5 August 2024 reply in Lok Sabha stated “During the six-year period i.e. 2014-15 to 2019-20, Indian airports witnessed robust double-digit Compound Annual Growth Rate of 12.4% in terms of total passenger traffic. Post COVID-19, the Indian aviation industry is again on the growth trajectory and the total passenger traffic during 2023-24 has already surpassed the pre-covid traffic”.
Expanding on this, the Minister for Civil Aviation in a press conference has also said that with the introduction and successful operation of the Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) scheme, the number of airports, including heliports/water aerodromes, doubled from 74 in 2014 to 157 as of date. He said that in the next 5 years, 50 more airports, including the expansion of the existing airports, are planned to be developed. Ultimately, the government envisions about 350 airports by the centenary year of Independence (2047).
However, with the increase in airports, passenger volume, and market expansion, ensuring the safety and security of air travel remains a critical challenge for the government. As per the 2022 report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee, of the 118 operational airports in India, 90 are categorized as either sensitive or hyper-sensitive due to security concerns, leaving only 28 under the normal category.
Between 2014 and 2017, Indian airports received a total of 120 hoax bomb threats
In the context of numerous bomb threats received in the last couple of weeks, we looked for public data about the number of such calls received in the last few years. But there is no such consolidated data available in the public domain.
However, a 27 July 2017 reply in the Lok Sabha stated that a total of 120 Hoax Bomb Threats were received by 20 Airports in India in the last 3 years. National Capital New Delhi Airport received the highest (40) number of such calls, followed by Mumbai with 17, and Bangalore with 14, adding up to 71. In other words, 59% of hoax calls were received by these 3 airports. Notably, the number of bomb threats received in the last couple of weeks outnumbers the total number of such calls received during the 3 years from 2014 to 2017.
Over 300 passengers have been included in the ‘No Fly’ list, since 2017
In a new development, while addressing the press, the minister also proposed to amend Aircraft Security Rules to include those responsible for making ‘Hoax Bomb Threats’ into the ‘No Fly List’. Additionally, another pertinent initiative ‘Digi Yatra’ is also planned to be implemented in a phased manner across all airports in India, to also facilitate the ‘No Fly’ list. Launched in 2022, Digi Yatra is a mobile application-based platform that enables contactless and seamless passenger processing at airports through facial recognition technology (FRT).
Factly had previously published (read here & here) explainers about the introduction of new rules in the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) regarding the handling of ‘Unruly Passengers’ and including them in the ‘No Fly’ list. The rules define the unruly behaviour of a passenger as failure to comply with the rules of the airport, and aircraft, and follow the instructions of the airport staff or crew members. Broadly, unruly behaviour is categorized into 3 levels, depending on the severity of the offence. Accordingly, if proven guilty, the passenger will be included in the ‘No Fly’ list and will not be allowed to travel to and from India for a period of 3 months to 2 years, either by the particular airline service with which the offence is committed and/or by other services too.
The data of year and airline-wise number of people included in the ‘No Fly’ list is not readily available in the public domain. However, data from some of the parliamentary questions and answers, as compiled by Dataful, revealed that the total number of passengers included in the ‘No Fly’ list has increased over the years. From its introduction in 2017 to 2019, there was only one passenger who was put on the ‘No Fly’ list. But, starting in 2020, the number has increased over the years. The highest was observed in the previous year 2023 with 110 passengers put on the list. In 2024, 51 individuals were put on the list as of 01 July 2024.
When compared by Airline (as available from 2017 to 2022) Indigo topped each year from 2020 to 2022 with 10, 45, and 46 passengers in the ‘No Fly’ list, respectively.
Amid the ongoing bomb threat incidents, which have already led to approximately 170 such threats in recent weeks, the number of individuals placed on the ‘No Fly’ list is likely to increase, especially if the proposed amendments to the security rules are enacted.
Parliamentary Standing Committee Highlights Security Concerns in Airports
The 2022 report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee underscored several significant security concerns at Indian airports and offered recommendations to address these issues. Key highlights and recommendations include:
- The fast-tracked and unprecedented growth in the Civil Aviation Sector would require parallel enhancement of security infrastructure in this sector as well.
- Multiple agencies are involved in providing security at airports. However, they are also engaged in responsibilities, which are completely different from their roles, in addition to their main responsibilities
- There is a shortage of security staff. The aviation ministry should set up dedicated institutions across the country to cater to the need for increased manpower in all the security aspects of the aviation sector
- Only 20 operational Airports in India have Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS). Wherever BDDS is not available, the support of local police is being sought, who may not have the technical competence or the desired high-tech equipment to dispose of bomb threats.
- The global best practices for biometric scanning and screening of passengers should be introduced in the country.
- Constant endeavours should be made to make the security architecture and procedures dynamic by incorporating new technological advancements and best practices from across the globe.
