Southwest 737 Diverted to Phoenix with Fighter Escort Due to ‘Possible Threat’ – UPDATE
Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 (file)
A Southwest Airlines jet flying from LAX to Austin, Texas diverted to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport Monday afternoon due to a ‘possible threat’, according to several news reports.
Southwest Flight 2675 was en route to Austin when the pilot learned of a ‘security concern’ and requested diversion to Phoenix.
‘The plane was carrying 143 passengers and is currently separated from any of the airport terminals. Passengers will be boarded back onto the same plane if it is given the clear. If not, they will be placed on another plane to complete their travel schedule.
According to a statement released by the FBI, the bureau and “law enforcement partners” are currently investigating following a “telephonic bomb threat to an aircraft made this afternoon.”
“The FBI and law enforcement partners are responding to conduct an investigation of the aircraft, as well as to determine the person/s responsible for the threat.
“A North American Aerospace Defense Command spokesperson said two fighter jets from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base watched the diverted plane through air patrol.’
Authorities are still investigating and passengers are still at Phoenix waiting to see if they’ll reboard the plane or be put on other flights.
We will update when we have more…
UPDATE:
No explosives were found on a Southwest Airlines plane that was diverted to Phoenix with 143 passengers on board, authorities said.
All passengers were interviewed by Monday evening, FBI special agent Manuel Johnson said in a statement. Investigators were making all efforts to identify the caller who made the bomb threat, he said.
The investigation continued Tuesday and no arrest has been made, Johnson said.
The passengers from the diverted plane were flown to Austin on another flight, arriving early Tuesday morning, Southwest spokeswoman Katie MacDonald said.
The plane that was diverted was returned to service Tuesday, she said.