Hyderabad airport on high alert: IndiGo flight diverted after email threat references 1984 Madras airport bombing

Hyderabad (The Uttam Hindu): A commotion erupted at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) on Saturday morning when airport officials received an email containing a bomb threat. Security agencies swung into action, and an IndiGo flight bound for Hyderabad was diverted to a nearby airport as a precautionary measure.

According to an official at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, "Today (01.11.2025) at 05:25 am, an email was received at customersupport@gmrgroup.in from an email ID named Papaya Rajan. The subject line was: 'Stop landing of IndiGo 68 to Hyderabad'."

The threatening email detailed a larger conspiracy. The email read, "LTTE-ISI operatives have planned a massive explosion, similar to the 1984 Madras Airport operation. The explosion will target the fuselage and fuel tanks of the RGIA port using microbots. The IED will contain a powerful nerve gas."

The email further read, "The Frankfurt operation is a test to study countermeasures. Please read the steganographic document below for information on the location of the IEDs. Read between the lines."

The Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) held a virtual meeting immediately after receiving the threat. The committee considered the email a “specific threat.”

The meeting decided to immediately divert the flight (Indigo 68) to the nearest airport. The flight captain was informed through Air Traffic Control (ATC). Airport operator GMR Security was also instructed to file a police complaint.