Hoax bomb threat forces plane to land in Crete

A bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax forced a passenger plane flying from Egypt to Germany to make an emergency landing in Crete on Thursday.

The Boeing 757 of Condor Airlines was flying from Egypt's Hurghada airport to Germany's Dusseldorf with 281 passengers onboard, when it diverted its course to land in Crete.

Authorities said the plane's pilot contacted the air traffic control tower to say there might be a bomb in the aircraft after someone found a note with a warning in the toilets of the aircraft.

The plane was escorted to Chania airport by two Greek air force F-16 fighters and landed safely at an isolated section of the airport. All 281 passengers were evacuated safely.

Police bomb disposal units were dispatched to search the plane with a sniffer dog but found nothing. Searches were also conducted on passengers and their luggage.