A bomb scare, inside the aircraft, forced an Air Mauritius A340 jet flight bound to Perth to make an emergency landing at Melbourne Airport

The bomb scare happened when a suspicious object was discovered in a drink tray inside the aircraft. The aircraft took off at around 1:24 pm and was already in the air for about 30 minutes when the said item was discovered. The canned soda which was identified as the "suspicious" item due to the word "bomb" which was written on its label. The captain of the Air Mauritius A340 aircraft decided to have an emergency landing in Melbourne after the item was discovered.

The airplane landed at around 2:55 pm at Tullamarine and there were already 12 fire trucks waiting for the aircraft. Police officials were also in the scene in order to conduct an investigation about this matter. Members of the Arson and Explosives Squad also came aboard in order to determine if there were any explosive substances and to also check the baggage aboard the flight while it is being removed and checked.

The investigation process was completed this morning and it was determined as a case of misunderstanding. Someone mistook the label of the canned soft drink and said that it formed the word "bomb". The said canned drink was a foreign brand and its spelling is similar to the word bomb. Kendra Jackson, the spokeswoman for the Victoria Police released an official statement about the matter stating ""It has been determined that no offence has been detected due to an initial misinterpretation of foreign lettering on the print of the can". No one has been arrested during this situation.

On the other hand, officials from Air Mauritius revealed that this bomb scare was expensive though they denied disclosing the expenses for the emergency landing and other costs. Steven Palombo, the manager for Air Mauritius Australia revealed that "The cost of having the aircraft on the ground for 24 hours is significant. We have to accommodate crew, we have to accommodate passengers from overseas. It's a significant cost from the company's perspective." Though that is the case, the company specified that their priority is the safety of their airline passengers.

The airline was carrying 180 passengers and 9 crew members when the incident took place.

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