A Delta Air Lines plane scheduled to depart from New York for Israel has yet to take off from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York following a bomb threat. Flight DL234 was scheduled to depart at 10:40 p.m. Israel time.
The aircraft was denied clearance for takeoff after police received a phone call claiming that a bomb had been planted on board. Authorities suspect that the caller may be the same individual who earlier claimed that a bomb had been placed on a Delta flight that landed at Ben-Gurion Airport on Tuesday morning. That aircraft was searched, and the incident ended without any unusual findings.
The flight, currently on the runway, will be permitted to depart only after US security authorities complete their inspections and Israeli security officials and the Transportation Ministry grant clearance.
Earlier incident on Delta flight landing at Ben-Gurion Airport
The incident follows a similar bomb threat earlier Tuesday, when a Delta aircraft arriving at Ben-Gurion Airport from New York was moved to an isolated parking area after the Israel Airports Authority received an anonymous report of a suspicious object on board that could contain explosives.
All passengers were evacuated from the aircraft, and security personnel conducted searches to rule out the possibility of an explosive device.
No suspicious objects or explosives were reported. Although security officials assessed the threat as likely a hoax, they decided to thoroughly inspect the aircraft as a precaution.
The Israel Airports Authority later confirmed the incident was resolved, stating, "The incident ended with no unusual findings."