Heavily armed police enter the plane. Credit:Andrew Leoncelli "We are no longer treating it as a counter terrorism incident," he said. "We did initially because of the reports we had and the assessments that were being made. We subsequently, on doing this assessment, determined this was a case involving a mental health issue." Mr Ashton said he believed the man was a voluntary patient at the facility. Premier Daniel Andrews backed the police response but did sympathise with passengers.

A police vehicle on the tarmac after a man allegedly tried to enter the cockpit of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH128. Credit:Andrew Leoncelli He said people were understanding of the fact police had to know what they were dealing with before entering the plane. He said rushing on could have made things worse. Passenger Andrew Leoncelli, seen in a file picture. Mr Ashton said had the incident occurred in Europe or the US, it was likely passengers would still be on the plane.

A passenger on the flight said the man was carrying a large black device that had several aerials protruding from it when he allegedly tried to enter the cockpit. A picture tweeted by one of the passengers appears to show the man face-down on the floor after being handcuffed. Credit:Twitter: @saroki19 "I've never seen anything like it. It was the size of a watermelon, it was huge, it was black," the passenger, former AFL player Andrew Leoncelli, told radio station 3AW. "It had two sort of like antennae stuff coming off it, but it also looked like it had an iPhone jack in it, so it could have been just like a beatbox thing." The flight had taken off from Melbourne Airport bound for Kuala Lumpur just after 11pm on Wednesday when the man stormed into the business class section of the plane and demanded to speak to the pilot.

Superintendent Tony Langdon, from Victoria Police, said early on Thursday that the man was believed to have a history of mental illness. He is a 25-year-old Australian citizen from Dandenong, in Melbourne's south-east. "We do not believe this is terrorist-related at the moment," he said. "We are obviously concerned for the passengers and crew. It would have been a very traumatic experience for them." Mr Leoncelli described the alarming moment the man allegedly made threats to blow up the plane, while holding his mystery device. He said he confronted the man, who ran towards the back of the plane, where a group of other male passengers detained him.

Those passengers held the man on the floor "with eight feet" on his head, back and legs, and hog-tied him as the flight turned around and returned to Melbourne Airport. The flight landed just after 11.40pm. "I ended up chatting to the lads who did it [detained the man], and they said they seriously did a number on him and put the hog-ties on him really tight. "[They] basically sat on him with their feet on his back with his face into the carpet for the next 20 minutes while we turned the plane around and landed again," Mr Leoncelli said. Another caller, Russell, said his brother-in-law was on the plane, and described how the man had the device strapped to his body.

"Apparently a gentleman wearing a beanie stormed into the business class section of the aeroplane screaming that he wanted to see the pilot, and he had a device strapped to his chest," Russell told 3AW. "Three or four people in the business class section I suppose abandoned their champagne and their orange juice and they gang-tackled him to the ground. They sat on him until they discovered the device, I think it was a transistor radio, gaffer taped to his chest." "His words were [they were] 'probably having a meeting on occupational health and safety' on how they were going to get into the plane," Russell said. Passengers said that, when the plane landed, they were left on the tarmac for about 90 minutes, with very little information from airline staff about what was happening.

Eventually, heavily armed police from the Special Operations Group, wearing camouflage gear and helmets, entered the plane and arrested the man. Superintendent Langdon said the item the man was holding was an "electronic device, but it was quickly ascertained that it was not an explosive device". He would not say what the device was, but said it posed no threat and was "something that everybody would be carrying around on a daily basis". The man had the item in his backpack when he boarded the plane, and it would not have triggered any safety concerns, police said.

Superintendent Langdon described the actions of those who detained the man as "quite heroic". "They managed to calm the situation and allow the aircraft to return safely, and we can't commend them highly enough," he said. Superintendent Martin Good, from the Australian Federal Police, said the police response to the incident was "effective". "The joint response by both Australian Federal Police and Victoria Police in responding to this particular incident had proven itself to be effective in bringing it to a timely conclusion," he said. "At all times, the safety of the public of course and the people on the plane was paramount to us, and that's why it has unfolded the way it has."

The man remained in custody on Thursday morning and was being questioned. No charges have been laid. The plane was handed back to Malaysia Airlines early on Thursday. Loading Just after 8am, passengers were still being held inside the airport at a gate lounge and were not expected to emerge for another hour or so.



A Melbourne Airport spokesman said about 200 people were on the plane. They have now been held for seven hours.



Passengers have been provided meals and, as of 8.15am, were still under the control of Australian Federal Police.



Once passengers clear customs, it will be up to them as to whether they want to board another flight to Kuala Lumpur, stay in Melbourne or arrange accommodation at a hotel. This will be arranged through Malaysia Airlines. with Ebony Bowden