“So it was an important and exciting trip,” she told RNZ, and plain sailing until it landed in Sydney.
“As we landed, we literally came to a stop and the pilot came over the intercom. He said ... there’s a slight problem, there’s a security issue and we have been told to hold where we are.”
Passengers thought there must be an issue at the airport terminal itself – perhaps King Charles’ arrival the same day.
That was about 5.50pm Sydney time. After an hour, the person next to Nel showed her a news broadcast indicating a bomb scare.
Nel thought it must be nearby, but her fellow passenger said no – it was their plane.
At that point, people started to wonder what was going to happen.
“One of the passengers did get very agitated and he was very scared, but he was very vocal and it did take a few of the cabin crew – who were excellent – to just calm him down and get him to lower the tone, because obviously he was causing anxiety amongst the rest of the passengers.
“Of course, the issue was, ‘Why don’t you let us off the plane if there’s a bomb?’... I think everyone was thinking that.”
At that point, those on board began to notice a lot of vehicles – police cars, ambulances – and people in high-vis jackets.
“It all started getting rather real, I think, at that point.”
A “really good group of people” on the plane managed to retain a good sense of humour and pragmatism, she said.
“The cabin crew were excellent, just sort of keeping us updated as they could. The pilot was really good.”
After they eventually disembarked they were made to line up against a wall with their bags in the middle of a room as a sniffer dog checked them all.
Each passenger was then taken aside by a police officer and individually asked personal questions.
They waited another hour for their luggage to arrive on the carousel, “so that must have also been going through some sort of screening, I should imagine”.
Nel said it was a “little bit disconcerting”.
During the individual interview process, those conducting them were kind and supportive, Nel said.
“They were not intimidating. Very polite ... they couldn’t have been more professional ... we actually felt very assured at them being there.”
As for what triggered the bomb threat response, Nel said: “There may have been a note on the plane – that is what caused this – so we all sort of gathered the note had been picked up on the plane”.
“As to what point that happened we are not sure. I wouldn’t have noticed anything during the flight, though there was a slight bit of movement near the cockpit, I’d say probably 15 minutes before we landed. I thought ‘Oh, there’s lots of activity up there’, but that was about all.”
When she was interviewed after the flight, Nel was asked if she had seen a note anywhere, she said.
“Hopefully it was just a ruse and it was just somebody playing the silly goat and causing such a huge amount of disruption.”
Nel did not think she would sleep much the night following the scare.
“I feel a little bit wound up ... just the adrenaline still going.”
Yesterday, Air NZ said it was aware of “a security incident” on board the flight, the airline’s chief operational integrity and safety officer Captain David Morgan said in a statement.
“Standard security protocols were followed. Emergency services assessed the aircraft after it landed and passengers were able to disembark.
“Because of this incident NZ248, the return flight to Wellington was cancelled.
“Air New Zealand apologises for the inconvenience caused to customers on both services. The safety and security of all passengers and our crew is our utmost priority.”
Nel said she had received a “very nicely worded” and “quite a long” email after the incident.
Up to 40 emergency services vehicles were at the scene when the plane landed, including bomb squad cars and armed police, 7News said.
New South Wales Police said in a statement on Sunday morning “Officers ... attended Sydney International Airport shortly before 5.30pm (Saturday October 19, 2024), in response to an aircraft incident.
“Considerable NSWPF resources were deployed to the scene; however, most have since been stood down.”
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