The suspected bomb discovered in a package inside a toilet that forced an Air France flight to make an emergency landing in Kenya appears to have been fake, Mail & Guardian Africa reported on Sunday.
M&G Africa said in its report that it got the information from the French digital channel, iTele:
France 3 television reported earlier Sunday that Kenya authorities discovered a bomb in the toilet of an Air France flight to Paris from Mauritius after it made an emergency landing in Mombasa, citing police spokesman Charles Owino.
Air France has still not received confirmation that the object on Flight 463 was an explosive device, a spokesman for the company said by telephone, asking not to be named in line with the airline’s policy.
Passengers were safely evacuated after the flight landed following the discovery of a suspicious object on board, Air France said.
The Air France flight was diverted after a suspect object was found on board, the airline said in an e-mailed statement today.
Air France Flight 463 landed in Kenya’s coastal city of Mombasa, and Air France in a statement said that as a precaution the passengers were evacuated from the aircraft by its emergency slides.
The Mombasa airport was temporarily shut down but has since re-opened. BBC reports the plane, a Boeing 777, held 459 passengers.