
A passenger has been arrested after a flight bound for Heathrow from Pakistan was diverted to Stansted and escorted by RAF fighters following a seemingly unrelated 'security threat' and 'disturbance' on board.

Two Typhoon jets were scrambled to meet Pakistan International Airlines flight PK757 this afternoon and the flight landed safely at Stansted at around 3pm.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed a 'wanted' 52-year-old man who was due to be arrested upon arrival at Heathrow was instead detained at Stansted on suspicion of fraud offences.

PIA said the flight was diverted due to an 'anonymous phone call' to UK authorities containing a 'vague security threat'.

Essex Police had earlier said the diversion had been due to a 'disruptive passenger', but neither force confirmed whether said passenger was the same person arrested at Stansted.

Although it is understood no one was injured, reports from passengers suggested medics had been on board the flight and that 'luggage was being scanned'.

Police are pictured in video footage arriving on the plane ready to escort a man off after it made an emergency landing at Stansted today

The officers detained one passenger who was due to be arrested upon arriving at its original destination of Heathrow

The flight had been due to land at Heathrow but was diverted to Stanstead following a 'security threat' made by 'anonymous phone call', according to Pakistan International Airlines

Essex Police said the disruptive passenger incident was 'not believed to be a hijack situation or terror matter'.

The plane landed safely just before 3pm, with no injuries reported.

A passenger on board the plane told BBC Radio 5Live 'medics had boarded the plane'.

The passenger said: 'We've been here for the last 3 hours. They're scanning luggage & medics are on the plane.'

Photos posted on Twitter showed several fire engines and a number of ambulances waiting on the ground at Stansted.

Passenger Naz Amin said the flight landed 'in the middle of nowhere' and was quickly surrounded by police.

'I realised it was surrounded by police and the police came on the plane about 45 minutes to an hour later and they took a gentleman off the plane,' he told LBC Radio.

'He wasn't being disruptive at all, he was just sitting down... there was no-one being disruptive on the plane.'

It is understood the passengers have now disembarked at Stansted and made alternative travel arrangements to get to Heathrow.

PIA staff at Heathrow said this evening that the plane has yet to arrive at the west London airport, but all passengers would have got off the aircraft at Stansted in Essex when it arrived.

A member of staff said: 'All the passengers would have disembark at Stansted.'

They couldn't say if passengers were brought to Heathrow by coach after they landed or if other travel arrangements were made by the airline for them.

A PIA spokesman added UK authorities 'received some vague security threat' prompting the diversion.

The plane is pictured here after landing at Stansted, with Essex Police officers boarding to conduct an investigation

The aircraft, pictured, stayed at Stansted for more than two hours while police carried out inquiries and it was refuelled. It is due to carry on its journey and land at 7.30pm

The spokesman said: 'The authorities received an anonymous phone call and then followed standard operating procedure by diverting the plane.

'Security clearance is underway and the aircraft will be cleared soon afterwards. All passengers on board are safe.'

Stansted is the default airport for any security threat. Such incidents are dealt with in a remote part of the airfield to the north-west of the terminal building.

The RAF confirmed that the incident was handed over to the police once the plane landed.

A Stansted spokesman had previously said the aircraft was 'likely to continue its journey onwards to Heathrow today pending inquiries that the police are making into the individual on the aircraft.'

The MoD would not confirm how many jets were scrambled or exactly how long it took them to reach the aircraft.

An RAF Typhoon jet was scrambled in May 2013 in response to reports of disruption on board a Pakistan International Airlines flight from Pakistan to Manchester.

The Boeing 777 was escorted to Stansted.

Two men were arrested and went on trial accused of threatening to blow up the plane, but were cleared when the judge ruled they had no case to answer.

Typhoon pilots are on standby 24 hours a day to defend UK airspace.

The diverted plane was this Pakistan International Airlines flight flying from Lahore, which landed just before 3pm

Once the plane landed, Essex Police were called. Officers said the diversion was due to reports of a disruptive passenger on board and was 'not believed to be a hijack situation or terror matter'

Squadrons are based at RAF Coningsby, covering the south of the country, and RAF Lossiemouth in Moray, to cover the north.

The Quick Reaction Alert crews can take off within minutes to intercept aircraft which have caused concern.

This can be because they are Russian military aircraft, or civilian planes which have stopped communicating with air traffic control, are not following their flight plan or have sent an emergency signal.

On some occasions pilots are given permission to fly at supersonic speeds, which may result in a sonic boom, to reach the aircraft as soon as possible.

Ministry of Defence figures show that QRA were launched on 12 days in 2015, eight in response to Russian aircraft and four to investigate other planes.

NOW THAT'S ONE VERY FAST JET: THE TYPHHOON - THE RAF'S MULTI-ROLE COMBAT AIRCRAFT The Typhoon is a multi-role combat aircraft used by the RAF and deployed in a range of operations, including high intensity conflict. The jet, which can break the sound barrier with ease, is extremely agile and is also used in air policing operations as well as peace support missions. Recently, Typhoons have been involved in the campaign against Islamic State in Syria, with jets dispatched from the British military base of RAF Akrotiri. They have also been sent out on multiple occasions to intercept Russian bombers flying in or near UK airspace in the past two years. The RAF Typhoon, pictured, can break the sound barrier with ease and is used in a variety of missions from combat to escorting foreign aircraft from UK airspace They are scrambled from RAF Coningsby in Lincoln, the UK's main base for Typhoons and would have reached the airline flight in a matter of minutes. Engines: 2 Eurojet EJ200 turbojets Thrust: 20,000lbs each Max speed: 1.8Mach (1,381mph) Length: 15.96m (52.36ft) Max altitude: 55,000ft Span: 11.09m (36.38ft) Aircrew: 1 Source: RAF Advertisement



