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Fake bomb forces Air France flight to make emergency landing in Kenya | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
An emergency landing of an Air France flight from Mauritius to Paris in Kenya was caused by a false bomb alert, the airline's chief says. | |
Frederic Gagey told a news conference that the suspected package turned out to have been made of paper and a timer. | |
The pilots of the Boeing 777 requested to land at Moi International Airport in Mombasa after the item was found in a toilet. | |
Both the aircraft and airport were safely evacuated. | |
Mr Gagey told journalists that the device appeared to be made of a carton, sheets of paper and some sort of kitchen timer, and placed behind a mirror in a toilet. | |
He said the device had had no explosives, it would not have been detected during pre-flight security checks in Mauritius, and passengers and crew had not been at risk. | |
He thanked the crew and the Kenyan authorities for the way they had handled the incident - the fourth such false alarm since the 13 November Paris attacks. | |
A police official quoted by AP news agency said a passenger had noticed an object in the toilet that looked like "a stopwatch mounted on a box". | |
Mr Gagey said the crew was alerted, and the pilots informed. The pilots decided to land at the nearest airport. | |
Joseph Nkaissery, cabinet secretary at Kenya's ministry of interior, said authorities from France and Mauritius had been helping with the investigation. | |
The plane was carrying 459 passengers and 14 crew members and had left Mauritius at 01:00 GMT. | |
It had been due to fly directly to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. | It had been due to fly directly to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. |
One of those on board, Benoit Lucchini, said passengers were calm and were told by the crew that the plane was being diverted because of a technical problem. | One of those on board, Benoit Lucchini, said passengers were calm and were told by the crew that the plane was being diverted because of a technical problem. |
"The plane just went down, slowly, slowly, slowly, so we just realised probably, something was wrong," he said. | "The plane just went down, slowly, slowly, slowly, so we just realised probably, something was wrong," he said. |
"But the personnel of Air France were just great, just wonderful. So they keep everybody calm and really quiet." | "But the personnel of Air France were just great, just wonderful. So they keep everybody calm and really quiet." |
France is still on high alert following bomb attacks and shootings in Paris last month that killed 130 people. | France is still on high alert following bomb attacks and shootings in Paris last month that killed 130 people. |
So-called Islamic State (IS) said it carried out the attacks in response to France's military action in Syria. | So-called Islamic State (IS) said it carried out the attacks in response to France's military action in Syria. |