AFP/Sofia
A plane carrying 161 passengers from Poland to Egypt was forced to make an emergency landing in eastern Bulgaria early Thursday because of a bomb scare, airport officials said.
The aircraft had been en route from Warsaw to the Red Sea resort of Hurghada when one of the travellers, a man in his 60s, announced there were explosives on board.
"The plane made an emergency landing at Burgas airport at 0545 after a passenger said there was a bomb onboard," airport spokeswoman Kristina Neykova said on Thursday.
The passengers were evacuated from the aircraft and Bulgarian security forces conducted an extensive search of the plane, she added.
The man who sparked the incident has been taken into custody.
A spokesman for Polish national carrier LOT said the aircraft did not belong to the airline but was a charter.
