Brazil: Air France jet lands after bomb threat
All 405 passengers and 18 crew members were safely evacuated
from Air France Flight 443, said Jorge Andrade, a spokesman for
airport authority Infraero.
Recife international airport was closed for about 30 minutes but
reopened after officials isolated the jet, he added.
Solange Argenta, an Infraero spokeswoman at the Recife airport,
said authorities were examining the jet to determine if the threat
was real.
"They're still inspecting the aircraft. It is possible that it
could be cleared and resume its flight tonight," Argenta said.
Argenta said the threat was phoned in to the Rio airport after
the flight took off at 4:20 p.m. (3:20 p.m. EDT; 1920 GMT). The
plane landed in Recife at 7:53 p.m. (6:53 p.m. EDT; 2253 GMT).
Flight 443 was on the same route as an Air France jet that
crashed last June off Brazil's northeastern coast, killing all 228
on board. While no definite cause has been determined in the crash,
authorities have repeatedly ruled out foul play.
