UK Fighter Jet Escorts Qatar Airways Plane To Land In Manchester Due To 'Device' Scare

A British fighter jet escorted a Qatar Airways commercial plane to land at Britain's Manchester Airport on Tuesday, reports Reuters. The Royal Air Force jet was dispatched after the plane's pilot reported that a "suspect device" was possibly on board. The flight, QR23, was bound from Doha to Manchester, according to BBC.

At the airport, armed police removed a man from the aircraft, the news agency reports.

"An incoming plane has been escorted into the airport by the Royal Air Force as a result of information received by the pilot about a possible device on board," Chief Superintendent John O’Hare said in a statement.

"We don't know how genuine this threat is but it is absolutely vital we deal with the situation as a full emergency," he added.

The plane, an Airbus A330-300, was carrying 269 passengers and 13 crew members. Passengers were disembarking as normal, according to an airport spokesperson.

The Manchester Airport was closed for 25 minutes before it reopened, according to an airport spokesman.

The airline issued a statement confirming that the plane landed safely at Manchester Airport, before its scheduled arrival time of 13:15 BST.

"The crew onboard had received a threat about a possible device on board and Qatar Airways immediately took all the necessary precautions to alert British authorities," Qatar Airways said in a statement. "As this is a matter of a police investigation, we cannot comment further at this time."