A passenger plane has been escorted by warplanes to make an emergency landing in Barcelona, after a woman spotted a fellow passenger making bomb threats on his phone.
The plane, a Turkish Airlines jet that departed from Istanbul airport this morning and landed at El Prat Airport just before 11am, was escorted by Spanish and French jets over the Mediterranean Sea, according to El Nacional.
The threat was detected as the plane was near the coast of Italy, at around 10am. Spanish media reported that the crew was alerted by a woman who said she had seen another passenger make a bomb threat on his phone.
The plane circled several times before landing. Police surrounded the plane and boarded it soon after.
Upon landing on Runway 2, the plane was reportedly moved to a safe area at a distant parking lot.
There were 148 passengers and seven crew members onboard the Airbus A-321 as it landed, all of whom are being reviewed by investigators, local media reported.
The government of Catalonia said today that it has ‘activated the Aerocat plan [special plan for aeronautical emergencies] to monitor the risk situation on a flight landed at El Prat’.
Footage from the plane shared to social media appeared to show dozens of police officers and airport security staff, as well as at least one ambulance, on the tarmac outside the plane.
The passenger who shared the video described an ‘eerie atmosphere’ on the plane upon its arrival
Footage from the plane shared to social media appeared to show dozens of police officers and airport security staff, as well as at least one ambulance, on the tarmac outside the plane
Several apparently armed police officers were seen standing on the tarmac parallel to the plane
The passenger who shared the video described an ‘eerie atmosphere’ on the plane upon its arrival
Several apparently armed police officers were seen standing on the tarmac parallel to the plane.
At least one sniffer dog was seen apparently investigating the luggage of passengers onboard the plane.
The passenger who shared the video described an ‘eerie atmosphere’ on the plane upon its arrival.
He said the jet was ‘surrounded by armed men’, adding: ‘The captain announced that everyone should disembark one by one according to their seat numbers’.
Operations at El Prat do not appear to be majorly affected by the incident, though departures and arrivals over the next few hours have been delayed.
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Passenger jet is escorted by warplanes and makes emergency landing in Barcelona after woman ‘spots fellow traveller making bomb threat on his phone’