An investigation has been launched after a bomb scare on a TUI flight from the UK caused an emergency to be declared at Lanzarote Airport.
A handwritten note was passed to one of the pilots on Thursday morning claiming a bomb was on board the flight, from Cardiff, Lanzarote Emergency Services said.
According to posts on social media, the note was found on one of the plane’s seats and had been left by a passenger on the previous flight.
One passenger said the Captain announced there was a possibility of a device on board, the aircraft was to make an emergency landing and Portuguese fighter jets would be escorting the flight.
The passenger said it was then decided to continue to César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport, because the risk had been deemed ‘low’. After landing, all passengers had to have their bags inspected.
Canarian Weekly said: “Specialist bomb disposal teams (TEDAX), along with airport firefighters, surrounded the aircraft and carried out a thorough inspection of the plane. No explosive device was found, and the threat was quickly determined to be a false alarm.
“While the aircraft was searched, some departures were temporarily delayed as a precaution.”
It added: “Authorities are now investigating the incident to determine the origin of the false threat.”
Travel Gossip has approached TUI for a comment.
