Fighter jets scramble to UK-bound Etihad flight

British fighter jets scrambled to escort an Etihad Airways flight in to land at London’s Stansted Airport on Monday, after it was diverted because of a threat to "blow up the plane", HotelierMiddleEast.com can reveal.

A HotelierMiddleEast.com source who was on the flight said the passenger "said he would blow up the plane".

"We were diverted to Stanstead with a Eurofighter escort and waited for six hours while it was sorted out," he added.

A 37-year-old British man was arrested after the flight bound from Abu Dhabi to London’s Heathrow Airport landed just after midday on Monday.

Two Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jets were scrambled from a nearby military base during the incident to escort the flight.

Essex Police, who were called to attend the incident, told reporters the pilot had reported a passenger making threats and causing a disruption.

A spokeswoman for Abu Dhabi-based Etihad said it was a "simple case of inappropriate comments made on the flight and a disruptive passenger. There was no threat to the safety of the aircraft or the passengers.”

Stansted is the UK’s designated airport to deal with security-related issues such as bomb threats and hijackings. Operations at the airport were suspended while the plane landed.