Bomb scare forces Singapore Airlines plane to land
(AFP) – 15 hours ago
KOLKATA, India — A Singapore Airlines plane flying from Moscow to Singapore had to make an emergency landing in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata after a bomb scare, an airport official has told AFP.
The plane, carrying 265 people, was denied permission to land in the Indian capital New Delhi because of heightened security for the opening of the Commonwealth Games on Sunday.
"The pilot changed course of the plane after a bomb alert from Moscow police," Kolkata airport director R. Srinivasan said.
"The pilot immediately informed New Delhi airport about the alert, but was denied permission to land because of high security and restrictions for the opening of the Commonwealth Games in the capital."
The plane was granted permission to land at Kolkata airport, where it touched down shortly before midnight.
The passengers have been offloaded and security forces are searching the aircraft and baggage, Srinivasan said.
Looks like another screw-up over the Commonwealth games.
India DENIES a plane landing rights when it has a bomb threat on-board!? What if it exploded in those extra minutes it took to divert to a different airport? This sounds like a really stupid idea to me.
What do you think?