Passengers of a Ryanair plane ride on a bus, after their flight landed at Athens' International Eleftherios Venizelos airport, following a bomb threat in midair, on the outskirts of Athens, Greece, January 22, 2023. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis
ATHENS (Reuters) - Police on Sunday were searching a Ryanair passenger plane that landed at Athens International Airport for any suspicious items after receiving an alert for a bomb threat, police officials said.
The pilot of the Boeing 737 aircraft, with about 190 passengers and crew on board, had earlier alerted authorities over a possible explosive device on board, one of the officials said.
The plane, which was flying from Katowice in Poland to Greece arrived in Athens escorted by two fighter jets at 5:35 p.m. (1535 GMT). Firefighting engines were on standby as it landed.
Police were later searching passengers as they were disembarking and their luggage was lined up outside the aircraft.
(Reporting by Renee Maltezou and Alkis Konstantinidis; Editing by Frances Kerry)
