Police have arrested two men on suspicion of making a bomb hoax which led to the evacuation of an easyJet flight at Manchester Airport yesterday.
The airline confirmed that at around 3.30pm on Thursday, officers were called to Manchester Airport following reports that a passenger had claimed to have a bomb in his bag.
Flight EZY1893, bound for Marrakech, was immediately evacuated and two men, aged 45 and 46, were arrested on suspicion of making a bomb hoax.
Passengers and their baggage were then subjected to another security screening before they were allowed back on the plane.
No explosive devices were found.
Since the terror attack in Paris on Friday, there have been a number of bomb scares on flights and at airports.
A flight from Warsaw to the Egyptian resort of Hurghada was diverted yesterday morning after a passenger ‘joked’ about having explosives on board.
On Wednesday, hundreds of passengers were evacuated from Copenhagen’s international airport after ‘an overheard conversation about a bomb’.
And earlier this week, two Air France flights on their way to Paris were diverted after they both received mid-air bomb threats.
The scares come as security is tightened across Europe and in the US amid heightened concerns about terror attacks.
Cyprus has stepped up security measures at Larnaca and Paphos international airports, with more police patrolling the grounds surrounding the airports, within the airport buildings, and tighter flight security measures.
Denmark and Sweden have both raised their terror alerts, while in Rome hundreds of extra troops are being deployed in preparation for the arrival of millions of pilgrims next month for Pope Francis’s big Jubilee Year.
Italy has announced it will close the airspace over Rome to drones during the celebrations.
