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| Two held after RAF Typhoon jets escort Pakistan plane over UK | Two held after RAF Typhoon jets escort Pakistan plane over UK |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Two men have been arrested after RAF Typhoon jets were launched to escort a passenger plane travelling from Pakistan to the UK, police have said. | Two men have been arrested after RAF Typhoon jets were launched to escort a passenger plane travelling from Pakistan to the UK, police have said. |
| Officers boarded Pakistan International Airlines flight PK709, which had been due to land at Manchester, after it was diverted to Stansted Airport. | Officers boarded Pakistan International Airlines flight PK709, which had been due to land at Manchester, after it was diverted to Stansted Airport. |
| Two men, aged 30 and 41, are being held on suspicion of endangerment of an aircraft, Essex Police said. | |
| A PIA spokesman said all passengers on board were safe. | |
| The plane reportedly left Lahore - the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab - at 09:35 local time. It was due in at Manchester at 14:00 BST. | |
| BBC defence correspondent Jonathan Beale said there was a suggestion there had been threats on board during the flight, involving some sort of weapon or bomb - although this was unconfirmed. | |
| Emergency signal | Emergency signal |
| However, one passenger told the BBC that the pilot told them there had been threats. | |
| Stansted Airport said the pilot had alerted the authorities to the incident, but it did not say what that incident was. | |
| A spokesman for the airport said passengers were being taken off the plane. | |
| "They will be taken to a reception centre in the airport where police may wish to interview them about what they have seen," he said. | |
| "At some point police and the airline will arrange for their onward transportation to Manchester." | |
| Stansted Airport earlier said on Twitter that it was operating normally. | |
| A Manchester Airport spokesman said: "A Pakistan International Airlines aircraft which was due to land at Manchester Airport at 13.30 BST today has been diverted to our sister airport London Stansted, where the authorities are investigating." | A Manchester Airport spokesman said: "A Pakistan International Airlines aircraft which was due to land at Manchester Airport at 13.30 BST today has been diverted to our sister airport London Stansted, where the authorities are investigating." |
| Mashhood Tajwar, a spokesman for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), said the incident followed a call to air traffic control. | |
| He said that about 20 minutes to half an hour before landing, information received by air traffic control in Manchester indicated there might have been "some security threat". | |
| "But so far it has not been ascertained what was the real motive behind that call," said Mr Tajwar. | |
| He added: "The plane was diverted to Stansted and it has landed safely over there and all passengers are safe, and they have disembarked." | |
| PIA said there were 308 passengers on board, as well as 14 crew including pilots, with a mixture of Pakistani and British passport holders. | |
| 'Serious incident' | |
| The MoD said responsibility for the incident had passed to Essex Police and the Home Office. | The MoD said responsibility for the incident had passed to Essex Police and the Home Office. |
| An MoD spokesman said the incident was now a police matter and that "our involvement is over". | An MoD spokesman said the incident was now a police matter and that "our involvement is over". |
| He said Typhoon jets could be scrambled after the pilot or crew of a passenger aircraft sends out an emergency signal. | He said Typhoon jets could be scrambled after the pilot or crew of a passenger aircraft sends out an emergency signal. |
| "The purpose of going up is to investigate what the situation is," he said. | "The purpose of going up is to investigate what the situation is," he said. |
| "Often when a Quick Reaction Alert aircraft is launched the details are not known, but it is known that a signal has been sent. | "Often when a Quick Reaction Alert aircraft is launched the details are not known, but it is known that a signal has been sent. |
| "Part of the purpose of sending a Typhoon up is to have a look and see what they can see." | "Part of the purpose of sending a Typhoon up is to have a look and see what they can see." |
| Philip Baum, of Aviation Security International, told the BBC: "This is certainly a significant incident, however the fact that fighter jets were scrambled to intercept is not unusual. | Philip Baum, of Aviation Security International, told the BBC: "This is certainly a significant incident, however the fact that fighter jets were scrambled to intercept is not unusual. |
| "Fighter jets are scrambled when there is a bomb threat, when there is a hijack, when the wrong transponder code is used or if an aircraft cannot communicate with the ground. Often the result is when there is an unruly passenger on board. | "Fighter jets are scrambled when there is a bomb threat, when there is a hijack, when the wrong transponder code is used or if an aircraft cannot communicate with the ground. Often the result is when there is an unruly passenger on board. |
| "What is interesting in this case is that it would appear that the aircraft was only 10 minutes from landing - these are initial reports coming in - when they decided to divert to Stansted. So to actually change a destination 10 minutes from landing would certainly imply that there was some serious incident taking place." | "What is interesting in this case is that it would appear that the aircraft was only 10 minutes from landing - these are initial reports coming in - when they decided to divert to Stansted. So to actually change a destination 10 minutes from landing would certainly imply that there was some serious incident taking place." |
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