Qatar Airways passengers only informed of 'bomb threat' via Twitter

Passengers on board the Qatar Airways flight that was escorted into Manchester Airport by an RAF fighter jet only found out about the news via Twitter.

Speaking on BBC News, passenger Josh Hartley confirmed he had only found out about the 'possible device on board' after checking Twitter on his smartphone.

Asked if he was given any information about the escort, Mr Hartley said: "No, I found out what was happening on Twitter. We didn't get told anything. First of all we were circling around the airport for about ten minutes and then the fighter jet came next to us.

"We got nothing from the cabin crew whatsoever," he added.

Matthew Cox also posted a series of photos from inside the plane on his Twitter feed.

The crew on-board had received a threat about a possible device on board and Qatar Airways immediately took all the necessary precautions to alert British authorities.

The crew is now fully assisting police at the airport with their inquiries. The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is our top priority.

As this is a matter of a police investigation, we cannot comment further at this time.

• Statement from Qatar Airways

Mr Cox later revealed that after sitting through a bomb threat, he and his fellow passengers had to endure long queues at passport control.

A man has since been arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat.

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