Qatar jet lands in UK after bomb scare

British police yesterday arrested a man suspected of making a hoax bomb threat that forced a Qatar Airways plane to make an emergency landing under military jet escort.

A Royal Air Force Typhoon jet was seen escorting the Airbus A330 to Manchester Airport, AFP reported.

"A man who was onboard the plane... has been arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat," the police said on Twitter. Passengers reported that the suspect had been hauled off the plane by armed police.

Chief Superintendent John O'Hare earlier said that the fighter escort had been scrambled because the Qatar jet's pilot sent an alert about a possible device on board.

The incident caused the diversion of the plane carrying the Manchester United football team back from its pre-season tour of the US, local paper the Manchester Evening News reported.

This article was first published on August 06, 2014.
Get The New Paper for more stories.