Another passenger jet diverted

Bloomberg

Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- An Excel Airways passenger jet headed for Egypt was forced to make an emergency landing in the southern Italian coastal town of Brindisi after a note was found saying a bomb was on board, Italian police said.

The plane landed at about 3:00 p.m. in Italy after a passenger found a handwritten note in a seat pocket that said in English ``There is a bomb on this aircraft,'' policeman Salvatore de Paolis said in a telephone interview. The pilot requested an emergency landing and was escorted by an F-16 fighter jet, de Paolis said.

Several people who were on board were questioned and bomb experts searched the aircraft with dogs, de Paolis said. The scare was a false alarm and the plane will resume its flight to Egypt, an Italian interior ministry spokesman said.