While no explosives were found, two people were detained as "persons of interest," the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office said in a news release.
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The plane remained on a tarmac, away from the terminal, for more than three hours after landing just before 12:30 p.m., news outlets reported. All passengers were removed.
The flight left Jackson, Mississippi, at 11:39 a.m. and was in route to Houston, officials said.
The sheriff office's bomb squad and the FBI responded to the airport, where passengers were held for several hours.
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A passenger, Megann Cox, told KALB-TV they were mid-air when the flight crew announced they would be making an unexpected stop in Alexandria. She said the plane sat on the tarmac with the electricity off, including the air circulation.
"They did not offer us any explanation until about 30 minutes in, that there was a customer service issue and they needed to address that," she said.
No information was released about the two people who were detained or what led to the diversion. The delay caused some on board to miss connecting flights when they finally arrived in Houston, one passenger told ABC13.
We've reached out to United Airlines for more information about the incident.