Passenger arrested after RAF fighter jet escorts Qatar Airways plane into Manchester airport after pilot reported fears there was a device on board
- Typhoon fighter jet scrambled amid fears for passenger jet flying from Doha
- RAF plane escorts flight to airport where it touches down safely on runway
- After armed police surround the aircraft, a man is escorted from the plane
- Police confirm he was arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat
- Nine incoming flights to Manchester were rerouted at the height of the alert
- The airport says there are still minor delays but it is now 'back to normal'
A suspected hoax bomber was arrested at Manchester Airport today after an RAF fighter jet was scrambled to intercept a flight from Qatar.
Concerns were raised about Qatar Airways flight QR23, which was flying to Britain from Doha, and a Typhoon jet was sent from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire to accompany the plane into land.
The Airbus A330 plane was surrounded by armed police officers and fire engines after it touched down and a passenger was escorted from the plane.
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An RAF Typhoon jet accompanied a Qatar Airways flight into land at Manchester airport after the pilot of the plane raised the alarm over concerns a 'device was on board'
A passenger on board the aircraft tweeted this photo of a man being escorted away by police
The man, wearing a green t-shirt with silver lettering, was then pictured being led onto the tarmac by police
Police have confirmed the man pulled from the flight has been arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat.
A passenger on the flight said he watched as armed police officers escorted a man from the plane.
Josh Hartley, 21, from Sheffield, was travelling on the Qatar Airways flight from Doha as he made his way home after a ten-day holiday in Australia.
He said: ‘The flight was quite calm really, there wasn't any commotion on board. And I didn't really see the flight attendants, or notice them around the guy who was taken off the plane and arrested.
‘You don't really think that sort of thing will happen on your flight. And with everything in the news at the moment, I am still really shaken up. I am just glad to be off and away from the plane.
‘We haven't been told anything at all by the police, airport staff for the airline, the whole way through this. No one has said anything to us. I don't even know if the police want to talk to us or whether we are even allowed to leave the airport.’
The young chef, who also volunteers for the fire service, added: ‘I am really shaken up after everything that has happened - it has left me really worried.
The fighter jet was pictured arching around the Qatar Airways Airbus after contacted authorities on the ground
The pilot alerted those on the ground to what was happening on board and a 'quick reaction' jet was scrambled
‘I have to get on another Qatar Airways flight at the end of the month, as I am going to Tanzania and I have to take pretty much the exact same flight back to Doha. I don't know how I am going to feel when I have to get on that plane - I would definitely consider changing my flights to another airline.
‘My family have travelled down to pick me up from the airport to drive back to Sheffield - and they had seen what was happening on the news. I have managed to speak to them very briefly, and I think I have put their minds at ease.’
He told the BBC: 'The flight was pretty calm all the way through, but some people are shaken up, quite a few. It was scary. One guy has been escorted off the plane already, but we're still on it. We've heard nothing yet. We've had no information all the way through this.'
Speaking of the moment he became aware of the RAF Typhoon was following the plane, he said: 'I thought it was just a one off thing, then I realised it had stayed for four or five minutes. I was thinking of the possibilities.'
Another passenger, Matthew Qox, added: 'Armed police came on and found a guy, searched him and made him stand up with his hands on his head and took him off the plane.
The RAF fighter jet circled the plane in the skies over Manchester after tracking it from the peak district
The plane was surrounded by armed police and fire engines after it came into land
'He seemed no different to others on the plane, nothing unusual.'
A video shot by a passenger on board the aircraft shows the jet fighter pulling alongside the airliner as it comes into land.
Chief Superintendent John O'Hare, of Greater Manchester Police, said: 'An incoming plane has been escorted into the airport by the Royal Air Force as a result of information received by the pilot about a possible device on board.
'We don't know how genuine this threat is but it is absolutely vital we deal with the situation as a full emergency. As a result people will see the police and other agencies at the airport and on the airfield.
'At this time I would urge them not to be alarmed. Our response will be as comprehensive as it is proportionate with the safety of those on board and in and around the airport our paramount concern.'
Residents of Manchester have said they heard the RAF plane roar overhead as the airliner came in to land.
One said: 'I saw the fighter jet come from nowhere on the heels of the passenger plane. It seemed really close and was incredibly noisy.
Greater Manchester Police, who arrested the man, said their response was 'comprehensive and proportionate'
The jet, from RAF Coningsby, was seen peeling off and returning to base as the plane came into land
'I thought it was going to hit the plane. It was circling so close. The jet looked like it was following the plane to the airport.'
Another said: 'It came over my house. It was so loud. It was a fighter jet and looked like it was heading to Manchester Airport.'
An RAF spokesman said later that the plane had landed safely and the incident was being handled by civilian authorities.
He stated: 'We can confirm that Typhoon aircraft were launched from RAF Coningsby in their quick reaction alert role this afternoon to investigate a civilian aircraft whose pilot had requested assistance.
Photos taken from the ground show the fighter circling the much-larger passenger plane over the city
Residents of the city say the fighter 'came from nowhere' to fly alongside the Airbus A330 airliner
'The aircraft was escorted to Manchester where it landed safely. This incident is now being handled by the civilian authorities.'
Manchester Airport said nine incoming flights had to be diverted to other airports, with five of these landing at Leeds Bradford Airport.
One of the flights that landed on time at Manchester once the emergency was over was the plane carrying Manchester United FC back from Florida where the team had been engaged in a pre-season friendly tournament.
'There are a few minor delays to outgoing flights but we're pretty much back to normal,' said an airport spokesman
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