A FULLY-loaded Air Mauritius aircraft was forced to make an
emergency return to Melbourne Airport this afternoon after a passenger
is believed to have made a bomb threat to the crew.
A soft drink can with the word "bomb" written on it forced a
Mauritius-bound airliner to return to Melbourne airport, triggering a
major emergency.
The captain of the Air Mauritius flight, which
took off at 1.24pm (AEST), made the decision to return to Melbourne
after the suspicious can was found on board.
The plane, with 180 passengers and nine crew, landed back at Tullamarine at 2.55pm where 12 fire trucks were on standby.
Victoria
Police will be speaking with everyone who was on the plane to try to
find out who saw the suspicious soft drink can first.
It is being
inspected by the Arson and Explosives Squad to determine if there any
explosive substances, while all the baggage aboard the flight will be
removed and screened.
Police said no threats were received by the airline.
At this stage no one has been arrested.
Melbourne Airport is operating as normal and there have been no delays to other flights.
The aircraft involved was Air Mauritius flight MK943 bound for a Perth stop.
An Air Mauritius spokeswoman confirmed a suspicious item was found on-board the aircraft.
An Air Mauritius spokeswoman confirmed a suspicious item was found on-board the aircraft.
It is believed a man was detained on board, but other passengers were safely escorted from the plane, which was undamaged.
The passengers have been brought back to the airport terminal by bus, while Federal Police searched the aircraft for any suspicious items.
The MFB said 13 trucks responded to the incident and two had already arrived on the scene.
Source: Herald Sun
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