Armed officers have taken a man off a plane at East Midlands Airport due to a bomb alert.

Police said the alarm was raised at about 17:15 BST due to reports of a man saying he had an explosive device.

Police and airport staff responded and a suspect was detained but no trace of a dangerous item was found.

Witnesses said the Jet2 flight was delayed by about three hours and the incident caused delays to other flights.

A Leicestershire police statement said: “At 5.16pm today (Monday), police were informed of a report of a male aboard an aircraft at East Midlands Airport who stated he was in possession of an explosive device.

“The aircraft was on the ground at the time of the incident.

“Officers worked with airport staff and with the aircraft crew to provide an immediate response to the report. In the interests of public and officer safety, armed officers were also deployed to the area of the aircraft.

“Following instruction, the man safely left the aircraft where he was arrested on suspicion of possession of an explosive substance.

“The aircraft has been fully searched. No explosive device has been found onboard and there is no suggestion that the threat made is viable.

“Following initial assessment, it was not deemed that evacuation of the aircraft was required.

“The man arrested remains in police custody and our enquiries remain ongoing.”

(Source: BBC)