Mid-air scare on Malaysia Airlines flight
A Malaysia Airlines plane was forced to return to Melbourne in Australia yesterday after a passenger tried to enter the cockpit.
According to reports from witnesses, a man ran down the aisle carrying a ‘very unusual object’ but three Australian men wrestled him to the ground.
Police later confirmed the suspect was a 25-year-old Sri Lankan man who had been released from a Melbourne psychiatric facility earlier that day.
They have ruled out terrorism and said the man was not carrying an explosive device but a bluetooth speaker, or something similar.
Flight MH128 had been heading for Kuala Lumpur with 337 on board.
The plane landed safely in Australia and heavily armed police boarded the plane.
Flight tracking website FlightRadar24 said the aircraft was only airborne for 14 minutes before performing a u-turn at around 11.30pm.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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