LONDON: An Air-India jet enrooted to India with 305 people aboard returned to Heathrow Airport Saturday after the airline received a call saying there was a bomb on board, airport officials said.
Fire engines and emergency vehicles lined Heathrow’s main runway as the Boeing 747 jet landed and the passengers were evacuated by emergency chutes, said a British Airports Authority spokeswoman.
Police said 12 passengers were slightly injured from friction burns and were treated at the airport’s medical center.
Explosives experts searched the plane for about 2 1-2 hours and found nothing, said the spokeswoman, who by custom was not identified by name.
‘Two policemen armed with machine guns guarded the room in Terminal 3 where the passengers were taken for questioning by police and airline officials,
Air-India said there were 282 passengers and a crew of 23 aboard flight 110, which was heading for Bombay and New Delhi when it turned back. The plane took off from London at 10:22 a.m. and was about half-hour out of London when it was ordered to return, the spokeswoman said. The plane landed at 11:35 a.m.
The spokeswoman said the plane could not take off again Saturday because aircraft must be checked after the emergency chutes have been lowered, Air-India said it was likely the passengers would remain in London overnight.
Security sources said) Air-India had been on the alert this weekend because of fears of an attack following unspecified threats, and also because of last year’s Air India disaster when an aircraft exploded. in flight killing 329 people aboard.
Article extracted from this publication >> April 11, 1986
