Fake bomb scare forced plane to make emergency landing on Crete
The plane took off from the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Hurghada.
ATHENS (AFP) - A bomb scare that forced a German passenger jet carrying 250 people to make an emergency landing on the Greek island of Crete was false, local police said Friday.
The plane took off from the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Hurghada on Thursday and was en route to the German city of Duesseldorf when the pilot requested an emergency landing over reports there were explosives on board.
However a security team including bomb disposal experts found "nothing suspicious" after inspecting the plane, a local police officer said Friday.
The Boeing 753, owned by German carrier Condor, was immediately evacuated after landing at an airport in the western Crete city of Chania, where passengers spent the night in a hotel.
The jet was expected to leave for Duesseldorf on Friday, a police source said.
In May 2016, an EgyptAir flight from Paris to Cairo crashed into the Mediterranean off the coast of Crete, killing all 66 people on board.
Investigators determined that a fire broke out in or near the cockpit of the Airbus A320 before it plunged into the sea, and Egyptian officials said traces of explosives had been found on bodies of the victims.
