- Gulf Air flight from Bahrain landed at Heathrow on Wednesday morning
- Pilot was’ repeatedly calling out for a passenger with an Arabic name’
- Authorities waited on the aircraft bridge in order to question a passenger
Amie Gordon For Mailonline
3
View
comments
Armed police waited for a plane to touch down at Heathrow amid fears that a terrorist was on board, claim terrified passengers.
The drama came as the Gulf Air flight from Bahrain landed at Heathrow at 6.35am on Wednesday morning.
Stunned passengers claim as soon as the plane landed, the pilot ‘repeatedly called for a passenger with an Arabic name to speak to the cabin crew’.
Passengers claim armed police were waiting for the plane to touch down at Heathrow amid fears a terrorist was on board
Passengers then said when the mystery man refused to make himself known police armed with pistols rushed on board as the plane waited outside Terminal 4.
A spokesman for Gulf Air said police waited for the plane to land before questioning a passenger.
Passenger Derek Deschamps, 65, said: ‘It was terrifying and the most dramatic thing I’ve ever experienced on a plane.
‘We landed and the pilot called out an Arabic name three times but no-one showed themselves.
‘Then police came on board shouting the name of the man they were looking for.
‘He didn’t come forward so they went up and down every seat trying to identify him.
‘There were two police on the plane and six in the terminal.
‘When we came off the plane everybody had to be checked and spoken to.
‘They weren’t bothering too much with the Europeans, but a lot of the Middle Eastern passengers were questioned.
‘When I got off a police officer checked my passport and gave me a good look.
‘I asked what was happening and he said ‘there’s a suspected terrorist on board’, thankfully it was after the plane had landed.
‘The eye-scanning machines were down so they could check everyone manually at immigration.’
-
‘Reason – BOMB’: Passengers given terrifying explanation for…
Bomb scares, blood spillages and plane hijacking: The secret…
Mr Deschamps, from Hanwell, west London, added: ‘There was nothing suspicious happening on the flight.
‘I was in the twentieth row with my friend from the British Legion – we were coming back from visiting the Burma Railway.
‘I was one of the first off the plane so I didn’t see if they caught the guy.
‘I felt safe as there was rigorous security when we left Bangkok and we had to go through two security checks when we transferred at Bahrain.’
A spokesman for Gulf Air confirmed police waited for the plane to land, as the name of a passenger ‘may have been flagged up’.
A spokesman added: ‘Gulf Air can confirm that flight GF007 was met by London Police upon landing into London Heathrow on Wednesday, January 20.
‘The authorities did not board the aircraft but were positioned at the aircraft bridge in order to question a passenger.
‘The airline cannot comment further on such matters.’
A Met Office spokesman said the force had ‘no knowledge of this alleged incident’.
Gulf Air said flight GF007 was met by police upon landing into London Heathrow on Wednesday, January 20
Share or comment on this article
-
Shocking: Brave woman with kids stops pickpocket is attacked
-
Australia’s tomato-sauce dispensers become a global…
-
Sacry ‘alien’ baby: Pregnant woman films her energetic bump
-
Unbelievable moment girl furiously attacks Uber driver in…
-
Horrible footage shows overweight farmer JUMPING on piglets
-
CCTV: Paratroopers launch brutal attack on man in the street
-
Bride breaks down as guests perform the haka at her wedding
-
Dedicated officer is shot in back and still gives out ticket
-
Jambo the gorilla stands guard over fallen child in 1986
-
CBB: Daniella explodes over Stephanie hiding shoes in her…
-
Horrible footage shows bullies brutally attacking schoolboy
-
Where did it go? Baby confused after giving dog his biscuit
-
‘Of course the BBC knew what Savile was doing, in my case…
-
‘I’m living a fairytale’: Spanish girl, 17, whose ‘OMG’…
-
Shocking moment thief PUNCHES mother in the face and spits…
-
Meredith Kercher’s killer Rudy Guede tells how he wrote on…
-
On board a ghost ship: Inside the eerie wreckage of the…
-
Mother facing eviction from her home over Bedroom Tax after…
-
Concerns were raised about a boy’s welfare ‘more than a year…
-
‘This is a shining example of a drunk person’s view of the…
-
Putin ordered Litvinenko’s murder after he accused Russian…
-
Oral sex ‘raises the risk of getting cancer by 22 times’
-
Glamorous gangster’s moll who ferried weapons for firearms…
-
Together, the two women charged with Sadie’s murder: Pair…
Comments (3)
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have been moderated in advance.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Who is this week’s top commenter?
Find out now