King Phalo Airport bomb threat was a false alarm. So why make the call?
The King Phalo Airport bomb threat against a FlySafair flight on Wednesday 21 October 2026 was a false alarm. The SAPS in the Eastern Cape confirmed it in a second statement on Wednesday afternoon. Bomb Disposal members searched the aircraft and the luggage, and they found nothing.
Now the police are looking for the caller. They have registered a case under the Explosives Act. So the question I asked in my video still stands: why would anyone make that call?
The King Phalo Airport bomb threat: what the police confirmed
The first SAPS statement came on Wednesday morning. It said a call came from an unknown caller using a private number. The caller said there was a bomb on the aircraft. All 184 passengers got off safely, and the police held the aircraft under standard security protocols.
The police then sent a large team to the airport. It included the Bomb Disposal Unit, explosive detection dogs and hostage negotiators. Disaster management, airport security and emergency medical services were also on the scene.
The second statement adds a detail. According to the SAPS, the call went to the passenger information desk at the airport. The caller used an unknown number. Then the airport informed the police, and the KuGompo Explosives Unit took over.
“No explosives, explosive devices, suspicious objects, or hazardous materials were found.”
SAPS Eastern Cape, media statement, 21 October 2026
After the search, the police declared the scene all clear. They then handed it back to airport security.
The flight
FlySafair confirmed in a statement on its website that the flight was FA388 from Johannesburg to East London. Rosestad reported the statement. According to the airline, the crew was told of a possible security threat while the plane was on its way. So the plane flew on to King Phalo and landed safely.
FlySafair gives 182 passengers and 6 crew. However, the police statement gives 184 passengers. I use the police figure here. Neither statement explains the difference.
The Herald reported that the aircraft arrived from Johannesburg and landed safely before the police isolated it on the tarmac. The Daily Dispatch first reported that the plane was stopped before take-off. Since then, the airline and the police have both described an arriving flight.
Meanwhile, the airport stayed open. As staff at the airport information centre told NovaNews, other flights kept arriving and leaving.
“The airport is not closed. This is just an isolated incident.”
King Phalo Airport information centre, via NovaNews, 21 October 2026
The charge
The SAPS has registered a case under section 27(1A)(a) of the Explosives Act of 1956. In addition, the Civil Aviation Act makes it a crime to knowingly pass on false information that interferes with an airline or an airport. That law also allows up to 10 years in prison.
“The SAPS reminds the public that making a false bomb threat is a serious criminal offence, carrying a potential sentence of up to ten years’ imprisonment.”
SAPS Eastern Cape, media statement, 21 October 2026
Why the police treat every bomb threat as real
Some people ask why the police emptied a whole plane over the King Phalo Airport bomb threat, which came from one anonymous call. The answer is simple. Nobody can tell from the call whether it is real.
S-RM, a security risk company, wrote in 2021 that airlines must take any threat seriously. They must do so, it said, no matter how false the threat turns out to be. The reason is the cost of being wrong once.
At King Phalo, that meant a bomb unit, dogs, negotiators, medics and disaster management at one aircraft. Every one of them was taken off other work to answer one phone call.
A private number does not hide the caller
The caller used a private number. That hides the number from the person who answers, but it does not hide it from the network.
As Daily Maverick reported in 2017, cellphone call records hold the numbers on both ends of a call. They also hold the time, the length of the call and the rough location of the phone. The police can get those records with a court order under section 205 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
My view: why make the call?
I am a guy who asks questions every time something happens, and my first question here was why. Someone who really wants to destroy a plane needs it to take off with the bomb still on board. So a warning call does the opposite of what a bomber wants.
The call itself served some purpose for the person who made it. But what that purpose was, nobody outside the investigation knows. Also, the SAPS asked the public not to speculate, and I will not guess who did this.
This is a developing story, and the reason for the threat is still unknown. We do not even have enough information to speculate with. So we need to wait for something official from the SAPS, the CAA or the airline.
I recorded the video on the King Phalo Airport bomb threat before the SAPS confirmed the false alarm. The facts above include that update. Finally, the 184 people who were walked off that plane are owed that answer, and so are the rest of us.
If a detail in this story is wrong
I tell these stories from the public record. I am not a journalist, and I cannot place your story on the record. So if you believe a detail is wrong, contact the outlet that published it. Only the media can correct the public record. You can still send me the full story through my website.
Sources
- SAPS Eastern Cape, ‘SAPS activates multi-disciplinary response following bomb threat at King Phalo Airport’, media statement, 21 October 2026, and ‘SAPS responds to bomb threat at King Phalo Airport: false alarm confirmed’, media statement, 21 October 2026: saps.gov.za newsroom
- Rosestad, Ilde Roos, ‘Passassiers is veilig na n sekuriteitsdreigement op n vliegtuig’ (FlySafair statement, flight FA388), 21 October 2026: rosestad.co.za
- The Herald, ‘Police search FlySafair jet at King Phalo Airport after anonymous bomb threat’, 21 October 2026: theherald.co.za
- Daily Dispatch, ‘Bomb threat grounds plane at King Phalo Airport’, 21 October 2026: dailydispatch.co.za
- NovaNews, Shanti Jafta, ‘King Phalo Airport still operating amid bomb threat’, 21 October 2026: novanews.co.za
- IOL, ‘Bomb threat reported on aircraft at King Phalo Airport in KuGompo, 184 passengers evacuated’, 21 October 2026: iol.co.za; SABC News, Olwethu Matsipane, ‘SAPS activates multidisciplinary response after airport bomb threat’, 21 October 2026: sabcnews.com; The Citizen, ‘Bomb threat sparks major security operation at King Phalo Airport’, 21 October 2026: citizen.co.za; EWN, ‘Alleged bomb reported aboard aircraft at King Phalo Airport’, 21 October 2026: ewn.co.za
- S-RM Global Security Insight, Darren Davids, ‘Grounded: bomb threats in the aviation sector’, 22 July 2021: s-rminform.com
- Daily Maverick, ‘Cell phone privacy: law enforcement pulls 70 000 subscribers’ call records each year’, 23 August 2017: dailymaverick.co.za
- Civil Aviation Act 13 of 2009, section 134: acts.co.za
- Screenshots of the statements and reports in the video are used for news reporting and commentary.
