Scoot Flight Bomb Threat today, Australian man Arrested
An Australian man, 30, was detained on Thursday after reportedly making a bomb threat aboard a Scoot flight with a destination of Perth.
In response to inquiries, a police spokeswoman said officers were notified of an alleged bomb threat on the plane at around 4.55 p.m. and after completing their security checks, they arrested the male passenger for criminal intimidation.
The official also stated, “The police take security threats seriously and will not hold back in taking action against those who purposefully cause public alarm.”
In response to enquiries, a representative for budget carrier Scoot said the plane left Changi Airport at 4.11pm, and a decision was made to turn back around one hour into the trip “due to a bomb threat”. At 6:27 PM, it touched down at Changi Airport.
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RSAF jets mobilized for the escort
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) was mobilised to escort the aircraft back to Changi Airport, the official said. Additionally, emergency services were activated.
“TR16 arrived in Singapore at 6:27 p.m. without incident, where security checks were completed. Scoot is helping the police with their inquiries. We regret that we are unable to give more information because this is a security issue.
“Scoot apologises genuinely for the annoyance and disruption this has caused. Our first goal is ensuring the safety of our clients and personnel, and we will keep helping our clients.
Two F-15SG fighter jets have been activated by the RSAF to accompany the Scoot aircraft, according to a Facebook post.
Onboard Flight TR16 are 363 passengers, 9 members of the cabin staff, and 2 pilots.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner’s flight path on the flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed it flying around off the east coast of Malaysia before heading to Changi Airport.
At 8.35 p.m., the flight, which had departed from Terminal 1, was supposed to land in Perth.
On social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, a user with the handle SquawkAlert claimed to have made a 7700 squawk, which is used to signal when a flight has an emergency.
Passengers and crew land safely
The plane’s passengers were still inside at 7:40 p.m.
The Straits Times quoted a 30-year-old systems analyst who wished to remain unnamed as saying that passengers were informed of “minor issues” with the aircraft at around 5.05pm.
He claimed that passengers were “passing phones to those seated by the windows to take photos” when the fighter jets arrived to escort the flight, but he did not notice any significant signs of fear among the passengers.
Although he did not see any suspicious behavior among the passengers, he did observe that the police boarded the aircraft after it landed to escort two people out.
The pilot then stated the bomb threat, however he added that he thought it was probably a hoax because the security procedures were required by law.
The traveler said that refreshments were offered after they disembarked at around 10 o’clock.
Additionally, it was disclosed that all impacted passengers will receive hot meals on their upcoming flight to Perth, which was planned to take place later that evening.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, a runway at Changi Airport was closed at 6.26 p.m. to allow for ground operations and reopened at 7.25 p.m.
Desmond Lee, the National Development Minister, was on one of the eight arrival planes and the six departure flights that were delayed while he was returning from Kuala Lumpur.
Due to the delay, he posted on Facebook to apologies to his residents for being late for his Meet-the-People session.
He explained to ST that his flight had departed later than expected and had since been placed in a holding pattern, with a total delay of nearly two hours.
Singapore Airlines Flight SQ33 had to be escorted by two RSAF fighter jets on September 28, 2022, in order to arrive at Changi Airport.
A 37-year-old American man was detained after allegedly threatening to blow up the plane while it was departing from San Francisco. Following his arrest, the man, who was later diagnosed with schizophrenia, received a severe warning for the bomb threat and four weeks in jail for assaulting an air steward.
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Source: The Straits Times