Video footage has emerged of the moment a would-be bomber was carried off a Malaysia Airlines flight to Kuala Lumpur.
The plane turned around and headed back to Melbourne after the man allegedly made a false bomb threat and attempted to enter the cockpit. Passengers reportedly tackled him as he headed down the aisle.
“I got out of my belt, out of my seat, undid my belt, went to the front of the plane and encountered a guy holding a big black object. I sort of engaged with him, saying, are you serious? He repeated the threat, which was not great and I backed away,” said passenger Andrew Leoncelli.
Heavily-armed police entered the plane and arrested the 25-year-old Sri Lankan national on arrival in Australia. Authorities later said it was “a case involving a mental health issue”, not terrorism and the man had not been carrying an explosive device.