Inebriated man detained for bomb joke aboard A-I

LONDON: An inebriated man who joked after boarding an Air India flight to Delhi at the Birmingham International Airport on June 11 that he had a bomb has been banned from the airport.

The unnamed man had taken his seat on the flight when airline staff alerted the police, who took him into custody. The man, who is also reported to be unstable, has not been charged with any offence but has been issued with an exclusion order banning him from the airport.

An airport spokeswoman said: "The man who boarded a flight on Tuesday while making claims he had a bomb on him was removed from both the plane and airport. He was issued with an exclusion order banning him from the airport, including taking flights from here.

"The airport takes these matters very seriously. Passenger security is of paramount importance to us."

A spokesman for Air India said: "The man was mentally unstable. Just before he boarded the aircraft he made a statement that he had a bomb.

"The airport manager called me to ask what to do. We can't risk the life of our passengers so we off-loaded him and handed him over to the police."

A West Midlands Police spokesman added: "The terminal duty manager at the airport issued the man with an exclusion order, which means that he won't be able to return to the airport.