Armed police arrest three men for ‘bomb hoax’ at Stansted Airport on flight to Amsterdam

Armed police have arrested three men at London Stansted Airport for allegedly making a bomb hoax on an easyJet flight to Amsterdam. 

‘Specialist officers’ stormed the aircraft on Wednesday evening following reports of a ‘security concern on a plane on the ground’ shortly after 7.40pm. 

It came after the runway had to be closed for 50 minutes while the A319 passenger plane was moved to a ‘secure area’, as scores of other jets were left circling the skies above. 

Six inbound flights had to be diverted amid the disruption, while others were delayed by up to two hours. 

Essex Police said in a statement: ‘Our officers have worked quickly and robustly to resolve a security alert on board an EasyJet flight at Stansted, destined for Amsterdam, and arrest three people. 

‘We received a call reporting a security concern on a plane on the ground at the airport shortly after 7.40pm today.’

It said the plane was moved to a secure location while they carried out their enquiries. 

It added: ‘This meant that the runway was closed for just a short time, keeping wider disruption to a minimum, and allowing the airport to fully re-open quickly. 

‘Specialist officers boarded the plane and removed three men who have all been arrested on suspicion of making a bomb hoax and they are currently in custody. 

‘Following a search of the plane we are satisfied there is nothing of concern on board.’

The saga caused multiple delays, with flights both arriving to and departing from the airport up to two hours later than scheduled.  

Stansted Airport said earlier this evening: ‘A flight due to depart from London Stansted to Amsterdam is currently parked on a remote stand while police conduct extra security checks. 

Stansted Airport (pictured) bosses were forced to close the runway while moving the affected aircraft to a ‘secure area’, while scores of planes were left circling the skies above

According to Air Live, a ‘bomb threat’ was made against the A319 passenger plane, sparking an immediate response from Essex Police

Police have rushed to London Stansted following a ‘security alert’ on a plane set to fly to Amsterdam

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A flight to Barcelona appeared to be delayed by more than an hour following the security alert at Stansted on Wednesday evening 

‘The airport’s runway was closed for a short time but has now fully re-opened.’

A spokesperson later told MailOnline: ‘The runway was closed for 50 minutes between 7.45 and 8:35pm. 

‘During that period, six inbound flights were diverted to other airports.’ 

It comes just days after police arrested a man over a Jet2 bomb scare believed to have been sparked by a hoax phone call from Turkey which forced RAF fighter jets to intercept a passenger plane and force it to make an emergency landing, also at London Stansted.

Petrified travellers described scenes of chaos and panic onboard the flight from Dalaman in Turkey to Manchester after the A321 aircraft was diverted to Stansted by two Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon jets last week. 

Armed police surrounded the plane and searched the aircraft for a bomb, keeping up to 220 passengers including young families trapped inside – reportedly without giving them an explanation – for up to two hours.

Detectives said that a man in his 30s had been arrested, adding that the scare was being treated as a hoax and that they were working with Turkish authorities.