Fake Bomb Threat on Garuda Flight

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - A Garuda Indonesia plane of Manado-Jakarta route received a bomb threat Wednesday. Garuda Indonesia Vice President Public Relations Pujobroto admitted the threat sent by fax to a national media after the plane of GA-601 took off from Sam Ratulangi airport in Manado at 2 p.m.

The fax notifying explosives on it urged the plane of national airline to land on nearest airports or go back to Sam Ratulangi airport. The fax also informed the existence of C4 on the fuselage that was planned to be exploded by time detonator at 3.40 p.m. or 30 minutes before the plane landed.

The plane was ordered to spend its fuel or if necessary to make an emergency landing so fire extinguishers were ready to anticipate it. However, no bomb explosion occurred as the threat mentioned when the plane landed on Soekarno-Hatta airport here.

Garuda Indonesia took several preventive measures to anticipate the threat on it. Based on procedures, the plane was headed to a remote area at the airport and the bomb squad, Gegana informed by Garuda Indonesia searched the explosive mentioned and confirmed later that it was fake. (ING/WAH)