13/04/2006

Aircraft bomb scare declared a 'hoax'

A Ryanair flight has returned to Dublin following a bomb scare which was later revealed to have been a hoax.

The Boeing 737, which was en route from Paris to Dublin, was diverted to Prestwick Airport yesterday afternoon after a note was handed to cabin crew saying that a bomb was on board the flight.

Three RAF jets accompanied the plane as it made an emergency landing at Prestwick around 2:20pm on Wednesday afternoon.

All the passengers were taken from the plane and interviewed by police, while the plane was searched.

The bomb threat led to Prestwick Airport being closed for a time and several flights being diverted and delayed. A 25-mile air exclusion zone was also briefly set up around the airport.

The airport re-opened early on Wednesday afternoon. The Ryanair flight eventually returned to Dublin, landing at 11:30pm last night.

In a statement Ryanair said: "Ryanair apologises sincerely for any inconvenience caused to these passengers, however the safety of our passengers and aircraft will always be our number one priority."

(KMcA)

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