Asia-Pacific

Former Air Force member detained after bomb scare on plane

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-28 10:10

WASHINGTON: A former Air Force member who claimed to have explosives on board a Delta Airline plane from Paris to Atlanta forced the plane to divert to an airport in Maine Tuesday.

The plane landed at Bangor airport in Maine Tuesday afternoon, after Federal Air Marshals on board flight 273 restrained the passenger. Delta said in a statement the diversion was due to a "disruptive passenger."

The plane is an A330 airliner with 235 passengers and 13 crew on board. Authorities said a passenger claimed to have fake travel documents and explosives in the luggage.

CNN quoted fellow passengers as saying the man was in his twenties, and sat at the back of the plane. After he was apprehended, passengers around him were moved to the front part of the plane. Flight attendants collected passengers' pillows and blankets, piling the cushions in the back of the plane.

The passenger was taken off the plane by authorities, and investigators were questioning him. They said his passport appeared to be authentic.

Transportation Security Administration said in a statement that after the plane landed, the agency and law enforcement met the flight. The passenger is currently being interviewed by law enforcement.

The unruly passenger was identified by his father as 26-year-old Derek Stansberry of Riverview, Florida,

Stansberry's father Richard said government officials told him his son was detained after the flight disturbance. He said his son never created any trouble before.

He said his son served four years in the Air Force, and left the service last year to work for a firm which has contracts with the Air Force.

The plane was originally scheduled to continue its flight to Atlanta, but Delta later announced passengers would be spending the night in Bangor.

After the failed Christmas plane bombing attack last year, the US government has revamped regulations, beefing up air travel safety.