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London-bound easyJet flight diverts to Germany Three men detained after London-bound flight diverts to Germany
(about 1 hour later)
An easyJet flight has made an unplanned landing in Germany and its passengers have been evacuated down emergency chutes after the pilot learned of a “suspicious conversation”. Three male passengers have been detained in Cologne, Germany after their easyJet flight from Ljubljana, Slovenia to London made an landing there, Cologne police said in a statement.
The London-bound flight from Ljubljana, Slovenia, was forced to divert to Cologne-Bonn airport at around 5.30pm on Saturday. All 151 passengers were made to leave the plane and undergo a security check. The aircraft landed in Cologne after passengers reported that the men were talking about “terrorist matters”, according to the statement. The men were not identified.
A spokesman for Cologne-Bonn airport said: “A plane on the way from Ljubljana to London has landed this evening around 6.30pm in Cologne unplanned. The pilot had been informed about a suspicious conversation on board, after which he decided to make an unscheduled landing at Cologne-Bonn. Police carried out security checks of the aircraft and questioned passengers after all 151 passengers were evacuated safely from the Airbus 319 aircraft using emergency slides, the airport said in a statement on its website.
“After the safe landing of the aircraft – of the type A319 – the 151 passengers left via emergency slides and were taken to a transit gate.” Six aircraft were diverted to other airports as a result of the police investigation, the airport said. It said air traffic was affected for several hours as a result of the incident.
German media reported police destroyed some unclaimed baggage. Flights were suspended at the airport for three hours. Federal police seized a backpack that belonged to one of the men, and exploded it outside of the aircraft, police said. They gave no information on its contents and said officials continued to investigate the backpack.
An easyJet spokesperson said: “[I] can confirm that flight EZY3246 from Ljubljana to London Stansted diverted to Cologne today. The captain took the decision as a precaution to enable the aircraft to go through additional security checks in Cologne where the aircraft was met by the police. In compliance with the local authorities’ guidance, passengers disembarked to allow additional security checks to be performed.” The men continued to be questioned late on Saturday evening. Other passengers were also being questioned, police said.
She said passengers had been given a hotel stay for the night and would fly back on Sunday morning. “We thank passengers for their understanding,” she said. “The safety of easyJet’s passengers and crew is our highest priority.” Bild newspaper quoted a spokesman for the German federal police as saying the pilot decided to land the aircraft in Cologne after passengers told airline personnel they had heard the men using words including “bomb” and “explosive”.
No comment was immediately available from federal police.