Passengers aboard an Air India aircraft scheduled to fly from Kolkata to Mumbai were evacuated on Wednesday following the discovery of a message threatening to hijack the plane.
The threatening note was reportedly found on the mirror of one of the aircraft’s lavatories shortly before its scheduled departure, an airport official said.
Following the discovery, the aircraft was moved to an isolated section of the airport as security agencies commenced investigations into the incident.
The development caused panic at the Kolkata airport, located in West Bengal, eastern India.
The airport official said police and other security operatives were working to identify the individual who wrote the message.
Security personnel were also reviewing footage from closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed inside the aircraft and around the airport to establish how the threat was made.
The official further disclosed that the aircraft was undergoing a comprehensive security search to determine whether any suspicious items had been placed on board.
Xinhua/NAN