On May 23, 2021, a scheduled Ryanair flight from Athens, Greece, to Vilnius, Lithuania, was diverted as it transitioned the airspace over Belarus, and instructed to land at Minsk. Belarus’ air traffic control informed the pilots of a bomb threat—the purported reason for the diversion, though the flight was quite near its destination already—yet once Flight FR4978 landed and was searched, no device was found. At the stop in Minsk, however, one of the passengers, Roman Protasevich, a journalist, was arrested.
ICAO Opens Investigation on Ryanair Flight 4978
Key Takeaways:
- A Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius was diverted to Minsk, Belarus, on May 23, 2021, under the false pretense of a bomb threat.
- Upon landing in Minsk, Belarusian authorities arrested passenger Roman Protasevich, a journalist.
- The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has launched an investigation into the "forced diversion" to determine if international aviation law, including the Chicago Convention, was breached.
- Many airlines are now rerouting flights to avoid Belarusian airspace, and pilots are advised to exercise caution in the region.
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