India: Bomb threats delay flights: BBC Learning English from the News

From BBC Learning English,

this is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

In this programme, a rise in fake bomb threats on planes.

Hello, I'm Georgie and I'm Pippa.

In this programme, we look at one big news story

and the vocabulary in the headlines that will help you understand it.

You can find all the vocabulary and headlines from this episode,

as well as a worksheet on our website:

bbclearningenglish.com

So, let's hear more about this story.

A large rise in hoax bomb threats has caused chaos around the world,

with flights having to land in the wrong places or turn around.

Now, a hoax bomb threat is where someone

  says they have put a bomb somewhere,

but they're lying.

They can cause lots of problems for airlines and passengers,

because airlines and authorities have to take the threat seriously

in case they're real.

In the last week,

there have been at least 90 fake threats targeting mostly Indian airlines.

Now, our first headline is about one of the bomb threats

that affected a flight from Mumbai in India to Heathrow in London.

This is from 'The Standard', which is based in the UK.

It says RAF typhoon fighters scrambled as

Heathrow-bound flight latest target of bomb threats.

That headline again from 'The Standard' in the UK:

RAF typhoon fighters scrambled as Heathrow-bound flight latest target

of bomb threats.

This headline is talking about the RAF,

that's the Royal Air Force in the UK, who had to send planes to help

after one of the fake bomb threats.

Now, we're looking at this word 'scrambled'.

Pippa, what does it mean in the headline?

Well, it has quite a specific military meaning here.

So, when a plane is scrambled, it means it's been ordered to do something

and moved into a specific position quickly.

So, it just means that the planes have been moved to help

with the threat very quickly.

But we can also use 'scramble' as a verb in different contexts.

It has a slightly different meaning.

So, if you scramble, it means you move quickly, urgently,

and maybe not very gracefully.

For example, if there's a good sale in a shop,

people might scramble towards something they want.

They rush to get it quickly.

Yeah, and we can also use 'scrambled' as an adjective.

So I quite like to eat scrambled eggs in the morning for breakfast,

and that's eggs that are all mixed around as they're cooked.

That helps with the meaning of 'scrambled'.

It means things that are mixed up,

maybe difficult to kind of understand or separate.

So, radio signals could be scrambled -

they're mixed up and difficult to understand.

Or if you weren't sure about something, you were confused

you could say that your brain is scrambled.

Your thoughts are all mixed around.

Exactly.

We've had 'scramble' - move quickly and urgently.

For example, I scrambled to get to the front of the crowd

to see my favourite band.

I wanted to get an amazing view.

This is Learning English from the News, our podcast about the news headlines.

Today, we're talking about hoax bomb threats targeting Indian airlines.

So, the fake threats have been targeting mostly Indian airlines such as IndiGo

and Air India.

The bomb threats have been made using email

and anonymous social media accounts.

Many flights have had to stop at the wrong airport

or return to where they came from, so that passengers can get to safety

and the plane can be checked for bombs.

Even though no dangers are found,

the delays cost the airlines money.

And we have a headline here about the impact of the hoax threats.

It's from 'The Times of India' and it says, False threats, real losses:

Airlines see red as they lose money and passenger goodwill.

That headline again from 'The Times of India':

False threats, real losses:

Airlines see red as they lose money and passenger goodwill.

So, this headline says the threats mean airlines are losing money and goodwill.

Goodwill is customer trust and satisfaction about the situation.

Obviously it's very annoying if your flight is cancelled or you end up

in the wrong country.

We're looking at the expression 'see red'.

So, are the airlines actually seeing red things in the sky, Georgie?

No, Pippa, this is a metaphorical phrase. In British cultural context,

red is usually associated with anger.

So if someone sees red, it means they become angry.

Right, and it's quite a dramatic phrase, isn't it?

Yes. We use the phrase 'see red'

to talk about the moment that we become very angry about something.

So, for example, I was in a restaurant the other day

and a man had been waiting a really long time for his meal,

and when the food finally came, it was the wrong meal,

and I could just see that he saw red -

he was shouting at everyone,

he was clearly very angry.

OK, so in the headline, the airlines see red -

they've become angry about the fake threats.

Exactly, but there's also another clever meaning in this headline.

When we talk about money,

we sometimes describe having debt or losses as 'being in the red'.

Right, so the headline is also talking about the financial impact of the hoax threats

and how that's made airlines angry. Yes.

We've had 'see red' - become very angry.

For example, any time I hear Christmas music in October, I just see red.

There's absolutely no reason to start playing it that early.

This is Learning English from the News from BBC Learning English.

We're talking about bomb hoaxes, which have caused delays and chaos

for airline passengers in India and around the world.

So, there's been a big increase in the number of hoaxes recently.

But what's being done about the problem?

Well, last week, Indian authorities arrested a 17-year-old

who they believe created hoaxes for four flights on social media.

But the Indian government wants to do more about the problem.

The Indian civil aviation minister has suggested

people who make fake threats could be put on a no-fly list,

meaning they won't be able to travel by plane in the future.

Let's have another headline.

This one's from 'The Week', in India: Faced with flurry of bomb hoaxes,

government mulls law revamp.

OK, that headline again: Faced with flurry of bomb hoaxes,

government mulls law revamp.

And that's from 'The Week', in India.

So, this headline is talking about the response to the flurry of bomb hoaxes -

that means lots of hoaxes in a short period, and a possible law revamp -

a change to the law.

Now, we're interested in this word 'mulls':

Government mulls law revamp.

Yes, this comes from a common English expression to 'mull something over'.

If we mull something over, we think about it carefully.

Yes, we usually use 'mull something over'

for big decisions that might take a lot of time or lots of thought.

For example, if your company asks you to relocate to another city,

you might need to mull it over before you can accept the new job.

In this context, we almost always say mull something over.

But, sometimes the phrase 'mull something over'

is shortened to just 'mull', like in the headline.

It means the same thing - to think about something carefully

or to consider it.

Yes. So, in this headline government mulls law revamp.

It means the government is thinking about things carefully and considering

whether changing the law could help stop the fake bomb threats.

We've had 'mull' - think about something carefully.

For example, I found my dream house,

but it's more expensive than I was hoping.

I need a few days to mull it over before I can make an offer.

That's it for this episode of Learning English from the News.

We'll be back next week with another news story.

If you've enjoyed this programme, why not try our

Learning English for Work podcast?

Our new series all about business jargon

can help you understand the strange phrases people use at work.

And don't forget to follow us on social media - search BBC Learning English

on your favourite platform.

Bye for now. Bye!