Confirmed as a hoax on news.com.au
Quote:
A BOMB threat against a Qantas flight bound for Australia at Los Angeles airport overnight was a hoax, the airline said today.
Qantas spokesman Lloyd Quartermaine said QF12, with more than 360 passengers and crew aboard, was grounded but was cleared to fly to Sydney tonight after an inspection.
"It has been assessed as a hoax, but as a precaution Qantas worked with US authorities to inspect the aircraft so it can resume operation," Mr Quartermaine said.
The flight was supposed to depart Los Angeles at 10am (3am AEST).
The 347 passengers and 20 crew members were boarding at the time of the threat and had to get off, according to an LAX spokeswoman.
Passengers were taken to hotels.
Mr Quartermaine said a new flight had been organised for passengers and would leave Los Angeles at 11pm (4pm AEST) today.
He said Qantas had been told of the threat by US authorities but declined to comment on the nature of the threat.
FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said agents searched the plane and the luggage for about six hours but found no explosives.
Detectives were investigating who made the bomb threat.
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Better to be safe than sorry these days.